Decide to be Great

As we are bombarded by the media with stories about success, riches and the fortunes of others, it is natural for us as humans to look at the people in those fairy tales, compare them with our own lives and try to find the advantages those folks have over us.  No, it’s not something most…

My New X3 Super Equalizer

This past Friday, although admittedly at the time not as excited as some other amputees, I finally received the Bugatti of all microprocessor knees on the market. The coveted and long-awaited, high-tech, super-durable, military-grade, butt-kicking Ottobock X3 knee. And let me tell you, after wearing this jewel of technological advances over the weekend, the only…

Limb Loss Awareness Month

It’s hard to believe April is almost over and I’m already thinking about planting my garden and getting the pool ready to open.  I mean, where has the time gone?  The last thing I remember before waking up in my cave was the relentless snow and ice that Mother Nature piled on us week after…

Understand that most people WON’T understand. Understand?

This past week I was talking with coworkers about my amputation and how almost dying, at least for me, was a blessing and a curse.  It was a blessing because it caused me, in the most abrupt and violent way, to be shaken to the core which forced me to slow down and smell the…

Only You Define You

In the secret and mysterious world of amputees, we contend with an entire dictionary of labels and names that we struggle to identify with.  There are the more polite names such as disabled, handicapped, physically challenged, and impaired which are all used in circles that include white-collared professions such as doctors, psychologists, therapist, lawyers, and…

My Career Never Defined Who I Am

Even after becoming a one-legged feller on the 4th day, 6th hour, 12th minute and 26th second of October 2005, not that any of us knows or thinks about that exact moment, I still find it somewhat scary just how incredibly fast events in our life can change for the better, or worse.  Of course,…

Kevin: Member of the Missing Limb Club – My Year in Review

As we approach the end of another year as a member of the exclusive Missing-limb Club, I wanted to reflect back on the past eleven months in order to laugh at my shortfalls, rant about my real falls and plan for the upcoming bloopers, AKA falls in front of people I don’t know Yes, because…

I Hate Baby Steps!

This is Kevin’s 4th installment read on as he shares the story of his accident and very long road to recovery. Over the next two months during my time at the rehab hospital, I quickly found that the goal I had of walking and continuing in my career as a police officer varied greatly with…

The $64 bill for toothpaste and my long road to recovery

Following two months of misery and approximately two dozen surgeries, at the end of May 2003 after doctors concluded there was nothing more they could do to get me back to “normal”, I departed the hospital dejected, weak, and depressed and with a $64 bill for toothpaste that I never used; actually, as gross as…

After The Accident…

The first time I recall waking up in the hospital after my accident, I was greeted with so many clear tubes and electric monitoring lines that I looked like someone dumped a bowl of spaghetti on my chest.  And I had bandages everywhere, head to toe, along with a neck collar that felt like it…

One-Legged Cop

My name is Kevin Trees and I’m a one-legged cop. Most people throughout my life have called me Trees, and most people I encounter everyday on the streets just call me Tree, without the letter “s”, because for some reason that “s” never makes it on the end of my name in a judicial proceeding…