My almost three year old son took a tumble in a corn maze at Swamp Fox Farm this morning. Nothing was hurt but he did get quite dirty and shed multiple tears. It was a little bit humorous because the whole reason he was crying was because he got all muddy. He wanted me to get the mud off. In the middle of a corn maze it’s a little bit hard to wash the mud off your hands and pants!
Unfortunately, I am one of those people that has a bad habit of falling. I can remember way too many falls in my life! For example, my very first date. There’s nothing quite like being a high school senior and falling down in front of your junior college student date! Oh, and then I can’t forget being 5 months pregnant and then falling down the stairs of the platform at church in front of the whole congregation!
I can remember other falls in front of the “popular kids” in high school, falling at home with my 3rd pregnancy, falling down the stairs as a child and so on. I guess I should point out that all of these falls were on the stair steps. Typically I can stay on my feet on flat land; it’s the stair steps that create the problem!
Falling is a normal part of life, more so for some of us graced with not so great balance, but it’s still a part. When it’s a little tot first learning to work it can be cute sometimes as they fall back on that diaper padded bottom. Other times it can be heart wrenching as they fall forward on their nose. As we get older, unfortunately those falls often lead to big bruises and sometimes breaks. For the elderly of course it often leads to a broken hip or ribs.
It can be scary leaving people alone when you know they are prone to falling. I found the KR15A Big Red Button at The X10 Home Automation Store (X10) which looks like it would be great for elderly people or others who live by themselves. The Big Red Button can be used in conjunction with the SC1200 X10 Voice Dialer Security Console to call a local family member or neighbor.
I do see one drawback, the Voice Dialer does have a siren and flashing lights which might only serve to increase heart rates and stress. I would think there must be a way to turn off those mechanisms though. That would certainly be something to ask about before purchasing the product. I know too many elderly people who have fallen and others haven’t known. I think we need to make sure we can find out a way to protect those we love when they fall.
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