When I was a baby I fell and broke my leg just above my ankle. As a result of the bone not being set correctly I grew up with my left foot pointed to the left, and I had a difficult time walking. Children at school made fun of me, and I felt sorry for myself.
One evening I was sitting on the edge of my bed crying and feeling totally down and rejected when my dad came in and started talking to me. He asked me why I was crying, and I told him that "nobody loves me", and that I feel like a misfit in everything I do. My father started talking to me about how I could make the best of this situation and turn it into a blessing. He knew that I loved music and started talking to me about how I should perhaps study deep in to music while others are running and playing on the school ground. Dad told me that some wonderful things could happen in my life if I would just not worry about that foot and look to the future and what can happen if I would learn all I could about music.
I will always remember those words and what it meant in my life. From that point forward I started reading every book I could read about music and musical instruments. By the time I was in the 10th grade I was writing music for the high school band and being called on to direct orchestras and bands in camp meetings and conferences all over the USA.
When I graduated from High School I had written more than 200 songs, and more than 100 band arrangements. I had learned to play every instrument in the band and had a broad understanding of musical composition and orchestration.
Arkansas State University music department took notice and awarded me a full scholarship to the university. In my first month of college I wrote a march for Arkansas State University.
The band director and the head of the music department of the college actually had tears in their eyes as I was allowed to direct the finest college band in the state in my music. After the 120 college students played the march they all stood and started clapping and cheering.
I thank God for that special moment with my father when I was only 12 years. When I was 18 years of age, I broke my leg again, and the doctor told me that the break was exactly what was needed to make my foot point straight forward. The cripple foot kept me out of football, and the Vietnam war. God certainly blessed me and gave me something to hold onto after those difficult years with that cripple foot.
Ren Rutledge
Added note from Brenda……..
I remember when Ren broke his leg. Our church youth had rented a skating rink,. Mom, Ren and I were trying (we were not good at it) to skate. Ren was in front of us and all of a sudden the weight of Ren’s skate broke his leg. As he went down I saw his leg go sideways. I sat down right where I was and vowed to never skate again. We have a bone condition that makes our bones brittle at birth called Osteogenesis Imperfecta, and we have all had our share of broken bones, but this was the worst I had seen. We were all thankful when we got the report that the break had actually helped his condition. Thank you Jesus.
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