Cup return vow

Hayzoo! People with ALS often have trouble swallowing liquids, and I just now practically stopped breathing at dinner when I choked on some orange juice going down the wrong way. My daughter was sitting on my lap and my son was misbehaving, and she was laughing at his antics with her delighted laugh. It's hard for me to stay stern with him, I usually smile or laugh. So I was trying to control my laugh and not spit or drool the orange juice all over my daughter. Both hands were occupied, one holding her and the other holding something, maybe a fork. I decided to force a swallow so that I wouldn't spew all over everything. I think some of it went down into my airway, maybe a lot. Because I was choking and gasping sort of spastically, trying to get control of my breathing. I was unable to breathe. The kids were alarmed and my son, the hero, hopped over and said he would get his mom. She was upstairs taking one of the rare bathroom breaks that moms seldom get but so appreciate. By the time she came downstairs I had set my daughter on her feet, wiped up the spilled juice that, through my tears, I saw she was about to touch, and was hacking in the sink. Then I retreated behind a closed door, turned my torso the other way so that it would drain the juice down from my lungs. Then I got positional vertigo and had to reverse. I had several very deep, orange-flavored burps, and a little hacking while I heard my son imitating my choking, and I wrote this entry. Now, to go out there and finish dinner.

Oh yeah, my vow: If ever I am stuck with liquid in my mouth when I feel a laugh or sneeze or other event coming on, I will just return the liquid to the cup, and not try to swallow it. This is my vow.