It’s the 8-week moment; x-rays to check the healing process. Would I be free to move around unimpeded by the weight of plaster and bandages?

Hold still. Hold breath. Hold life. Whirring, zapping, clatter-clank as tech changes x-plates. Repeat.

The tech says uncommittedly, “Just wait outside while the doctor reviews the film.”

I try not to fidget; afraid the break might not have healed. Dread facing more weeks of “castophobia.”

The doctor, ipad in hand, smiles. “Great news. Your heart is fully mended – once we get the cast off, you can begin to love again.”

I finally exhale as the nurse wheels me down to the operating room.

Inspired by Jim’s mlmm music challenge #197: what becomes of the brokenhearted:

“If it takes six to eight weeks to heal a broken leg after it has been cast, you could write about how long you think it will take to heal a broken heart.”

His choice this week, “What Becomes of the Brokenhearted?” reminded me of the BeeGee’s “How Do You Mend a Broken Heart?” Written by Barry and Robin Gibb, it was released in 1971 as the first single on the group’s 1971 album Trafalgar. The song became their first no. 1 single in the US.

I can think of younger days when living for my life
Was everything a man could want to do
I could never see tomorrow
But I was never told about the sorrows

How can you mend a broken heart?
How can you stop the rain from falling down?
How can you stop the sun from shining?
What makes the world go round?

How can you mend this broken man?
How can a loser ever win?
Please help me mend my broken heart
And let me live again

I can still feel the breeze that rustles through the trees
And misty memories of days gone by
We could never see tomorrow
No one said a word about the sorrow

And how can you mend a broken heart?
How can you stop the rain from falling down?
How can you stop the sun from shining?
What makes the world go round?

And how can you mend this broken man?
How can a loser ever win?
Please help me mend my broken heart
And let me live again

Please help me mend my broken heart
And let me live again