Avery Sun, Week 13: Getting my Foot Stuck in an Escalator in Korea!
Avery Sun
Week 13
Getting my Foot Stuck in an Escalator in Korea!
I’ve been saving this story since we started blogging since I thought it would be most relevant for the theme of Language and Memory. Now that we’re finally here, it’s time for my favorite story that I’ve told countless times and many of you may have already heard it.
I’m sure, when we were little, most of our parents have told us to stand still on escalators and keep away from the edges. For good measure, my mom often told me stories about people in China who’ve died when their entire body was consumed by an escalator (I think of escalators as metal monsters). Obviously, from the title of this blog, I never heeded her advice.
On the first day in Korea, me and my parents were trying to get to a river cruise tour (spoiler I never made it). While traveling to the port, I playfully pretended that the black bristles at the edge of the escalators in the subway station were cleaning my shoes (I was wearing crocs, which was a horrible decision). Inevitably, I felt an immense pressure in my foot, but surprisingly, it didn’t hurt at all. Calmly, I turned to face my mom and said, “I think my foot is stuck.” My mom looked very unimpressed and her face seemed to say “I told you so.” Thankfully, I pulled it out before the end of the escalator ride or I’d be mince meat right now.
 |
| Aftermath of the battle between my shoes and the escalator |
After getting off, my foot felt numb and something felt off as I continued to walk. That was when I looked down and saw the trail of blood behind me. I was brought to the information center, whose attendant called the hospital. The paramedics rushed me out in a stretcher and I got to ride in an ambulance for the first time (+ points for it being in a foreign country).
Not being the biggest fan of needles, I had a horrible experience at the hospital when I learned that my foot needed three stitches and that the syringe was broken, resulting in the necessity for me to be stabbed three times rather than just once.
 |
| Pain and suffering (I would also like to point out how I'm not even clutching the injured foot.) |
The rest of the trip, I was supposed to be wheelchair bound, but for some reason, my ten year old brain thought it was the end of the world to be seen in public in a wheelchair, so my poor dad was forced to piggyback me in the Asian summer heat. I needed help showering because my foot couldn’t touch water and I had to eat pills to make sure I didn’t die from an infection from escalator grease.
What I got from this experience is for sure a lesson learned, and an immense fear of escalators. If there are stairs next to the escalator, I would take those a hundred percent of the time, which is why I especially dislike airports and malls since they often don’t have the second option. So, speaking from personal experience, you guys should be careful on escalators.
Hi Avery! I, very luckily, have never gotten my foot stuck in an escalator. This means that such a foreign experience of absolutely demolishing my foot in an escalator will hopefully remain just that: a foreign experience. It was horrifying to read about such a dangerous event in your life, such a dark and depressing time that has scarred to you this day, both physically and mentally. I am praying for your recovery and hoping that one day you may take the escalator up the floors at SFO rather than the stairs. After all, "our greatest glory is not in never failing, but in rising up every time" we fall or get stuck. Good Luck!
ReplyDeleteHi Avery, wow I guess my mom's warnings about the escalator are actually true! I remember that whenever I would step onto escalators, my mom would always tell me to watch my step. But I often thought nothing of it, just one of this things parents say. But your story is honestly pretty scary, so I might listen to my mom more often. I love that you included pictures (and memes) from the incident to really give the reader a good sense of the story. It sounds like this is a pretty traumatic memory for you, but I think you learnt something from it, so that's good too. Looking forward to your next post!
ReplyDeleteHi Avery, your story was very interesting and also horrifying. Although I have never gotten injured on an escalator, I have always had an inexplicable fear of escalators. Like you said, if there is a staircase or elevator nearby, I would much rather use that. Your story really demonstrates the very real safety hazards of using an escalator. Although injuries can happen anywhere, I really do hope engineers work to make escalators a bit safer, because I feel like putting your feet next to the bristles is something that many kids do. I know I certainly have done it, although I definitely will not do anything like that again.
ReplyDeleteHey Avery, while I have been constantly reminded by my parents to not do this exact thing, I have managed to avoid such a dangerous outcome during my younger years. I honestly never saw the harm, considering it literally seemed like a conveniently-placed brush that wouldn't be able to inflict any level of serious pain or misfortune on me. Such an injury was almost unbelievable to me and seemed like something my parents would merely claim happened as some sort of scare tactic to keep me from doing it. However, hearing that it happened to you makes me realize that it was definitely a substantiated claim and story from their end, and I'd imagine it being incredible horrifying and scary for you. Your story likely inspired a lot of us to keep from this idea of using the bristles on escalators, so although this memory is likely terrible for you, it does seem to have done you and a lot of other people a lot of good as a reminder and lesson.
ReplyDeleteHi Avery! The second I heard a metaphorical phrase from your blog, I immediately connected it to my mother’s “daily talk” when I was younger, which surprisingly was the exact same case from your end. Similar to your escalator incident, everytime I recollect memories I have metaphorically “met with from the past,” it sparks a small sense of happiness within me for the great life and passion our parents put into trying to give us the best life possible. After all of the hard work and time they put into giving birth to us, although they might scream or get mad at us at certain times, it’s always so satisfying to go back in time for a few minutes, and remember all the great things they have provided to us. As scary as their threats might be, that degree of threat reflects on the amount of life they have for us. Their want to keep us in the best situation possible results in showcasing the great deal of care they have for us, which I must say we should respect. Thank you for sharing this personal memory of your and I hope to read more about your experiences with your family
ReplyDeleteHi Avery! I'm sorry that you had go through that experience. I honestly don't even know how I would've reacted in such a horrifying situation. I'm surprised that you reacted in such a calm manner, especially because I can see myself immediately panicking if I noticed that my foot was stuck in a moving escalator. It was even scarier to learn that the grease from the escalator could cause an infection even after the injury. I now feel strangely relieved that I've never had any sort of accident with moving machinery, although I've always had this irrational fear of falling backwards while going up on an escalator. Reading about your experience was definitely beneficial as it serves as a lesson to be more aware of our surroundings.
ReplyDeleteHi Avery, your blog post was very scary, especially because nobody has told me not to put my foot on the edges so I do it all the time. I am also confused as to a foot can get stuck in the escalator. However, I am very happy to know that you are safe. If I was in your situation I would be screaming for my life. I am suprised that you guys managed to react so calmly, especially your mother. Thank you for writing this blog post, because now I know not to put my foot in the escalator.
ReplyDeleteHi Avery! My mom would always scare me when I was younger by telling me that I’d get sucked into the escalator if I didn’t get off at the end. I was actually terrified and fully believed her so I was always especially careful around escalators. She’d also tell me to come to her if I got a splinter or else the splinter would go into my body and puncture my organs. That’s a lot more far-fetched than getting hurt on an escalator. I learned recently that traumatic memories stick around longer in your long-term memory which may be why they’re so vivid. I remember getting lost in India for only around 20 minutes back when I was seven. It was terrifying and I remember it very distinctly (as do my parents). I’m sorry you had to go through all that.
ReplyDelete