Citizen Cane

I brought the knee scooter back to the medical rental agency yesterday. It served well it's purpose. I know I couldn't have done half as well as I did without it.

I am now using only a cane and to a large degree it's mostly for my own reassurance. Funny thing about having a cane in your hand though is that people treat you different. When I was using the scooter it was pretty much people staying out of my way, like they didn't know if this odd hybrid of wheelchair and skateboard was safe to be around.

A cane though is a different matter.

It's as if there is a unspoken societal red carpet spread before those who use a cane. A door will always be held open. A place in line will always be respected or for that matter given up in order to accommodate the cane bearer. Sympathy pours forth from the facial expressions of those encountered. Assistance will be offered without so much as a raised eyebrow of need.

A cane is a symbol of injury; sympathy must be given. A cane is a symbol of seniority; your elder must be honored. A cane is a symbol of urbane savoir faire; Fred Astaire incarnate. A cane is a symbol of potential threat; a rapier hidden within.

All this as opposed to a pair of crutches. A pair of crutches are sneered at, albeit at the unspoken "there but for the grace of god go I". Crutches imply the user is a klutz who comically fell down a flight of stairs or attempted the experienced ski run instead of the more appropriate bunny slope. Crutches are clumsy even for the most graceful of us, a cudgel of a medical device. Crutches are weakness, the metaphorical made real. Tennessee Williams even used them as a metaphor for impotence or at least an improperly close for the 1950s relationship between two men.

A cane is a great prop, it adds dimension to the person wielding it. It's George Burns' or Ernie Kovac's cigar silently punctuating the joke.Twirled though the fingers or standing upright next to it's seated owner it signifies an importance, attention must be paid. The best you can do with a pair of crutches is to pretend one of them is a rifle pointed at the enemy. How gauche. A gentleman uses a sword.

At least that's the way I see it. And you should listen to me because I use a cane.