Although a person can fall several times, I may not get a phone call until the really bad fall happens.
Even after the fall that prompts people to call in, they still often opt to hold off for one reason or another.
I don't know why so many people tempt fate.
A few weeks ago, Mary from Virginia called in to talk about getting her uncle protected.
"My uncle is 90, lives alone, has trouble walking, and has fallen several times," Mary explained.
"But he just had a really bad fall outside last week, and fell on his face.
" I asked her to describe what happened, and Mary told me that her uncle had fallen outside walking to the mailbox.
"He must have stumbled and fell; he split his lip, bruised his face, and broke some teeth," she said.
I told her how sorry I was, and that we would certainly be able to protect her uncle from being unable to get help - either inside or outside of his home.
I then asked if we could call her uncle so that I could explain Life Alert to them together, in order to speed up the timeline of getting him protected.
"No, just give me the information and I will pass it along to my uncle," she said.
"He doesn't hear very well, so he won't be able to be involved in the conversation over the phone.
" Mary told me she'd call me back by the end of the week.
I let a week go by before calling Mary to check in and see if we were going to get her uncle protected.
"He is still thinking it over," she told me.
"What is there to think about?" I asked.
"He's 90 and falls a lot - is he deciding whether he needs a button or assisted living?" "No, he's not ready for an old age home," Mary said.
"I will call him and we will get back to you.
" I left a few messages on Mary's home and cell phone in the weeks that followed, but didn't hear back.
Recently, she finally returned my call.
"Randy, my uncle has decided to hold off on getting protected," she said.
"He wants to replace the teeth he broke first, and they are gold teeth, so they are costly.
" I will admit, I was slightly taken aback by this.
Mary then asked if I would mind following up with her in a couple of months.
"Mary, you called me because of your uncle's several falls, the last one in particular," I said.
"How many more times is he going to fall over the next two months - how many more things is he going to break?" Mary laughed uncomfortably, and told me that she'd continue trying to convince him to get protected.
I suggested that she talk to him about just getting some good, old white teeth in his mouth, so that he could afford protection against breaking them again.
She again laughed before hanging up.
Maybe Mary's uncle was involved in the trading of commodities like gold - But I think I read the price of gold was up this week.
Purchasing Life Alert this week would have been a much better long term investment.