A hush blanketed the room like a heavy down comforter on a cold, bleak, wintry day.

And then there was laughter.

It was a roller coaster ride of emotion for some 50 IFMA members who attended this month's program at the Fawcett Center, where Rosemarie Rossetti, Ph.D., wife of IFMA webmaster Mark Leder, recounted the freak accident that sent her into a spiraling depression, and the recovery that gave her the strength to return to life.

She dug deeply into her inner self to overcome the adversity she faced to not only survive, but thrive. And it was those life lessons that she chose to share with IFMA members in an uplifting address that left the audience reevaluating their own life goals, inspired by a story that truly does have a happy ending.

"Has your world ever come crashing down on you?" Dr. Rossetti asked simply. "Mine did."

In fact, it was an 80-foot, three and a half ton tree that brought about an irreversible change in her life three and a half years ago, a life that was filled with national speaking engagements, a career in university education, and various skiing and biking excursions.

It was a warm, sunny afternoon on June 13, 1998, when Dr. Rossetti and her husband decided to take an afternoon bike ride in Granville where the reward would be an ice cream cone. As they were riding along the path, there was a loud pop like gunfire, then the sight of a huge tree coming straight down onto Dr. Rossetti, crushing her bike, helmet, legs, and lower spine. Live electric wires cracked around her as her husband yelled for help.

As Dr. Rossetti continued to recant her story, the audience moved closer to the edge of their seats, dared not breathe, and relived the pain and tragedy that befell her that day. The tension was thick.

"They told me they were going to life flight me to a trauma center in Columbus. Now with that I kept thinking to myself, 'A helicopter ride, my first helicopter ride. I always wanted to get into a helicopter.' But this isn't what I had pictured," chucked Dr. Rossetti.

"And then I kept thinking, 'Life flight? There's going to be a helicopter? and they're going to lower a basket, and I'm going to be twirling like a human bungee cord all the way to Columbus.' Fortunately they put the stretcher inside the helicopter, where I was life flighted, inside, over to Grant Hospital."

The tension in the room was quickly broken.

After four and a half hours of surgery, Dr. Rossetti was given the news that her neck had broken, her lower spine had been crushed and she had fractured her sternum and ribs. Her injuries were serious.

"Things happen to us in an instant? and it's how we react to them that makes the difference."

In the days and weeks following the accident, Dr. Rossetti fell into a deep depression as she continued her recovery and rehabilitation. But she soon learned a very important lesson, and that is that adversity precedes opportunity. "The power to fulfill your dreams is within you," she said. "It always has been and always will be."

With goals in hand, Dr. Rossetti set out to regain her life. At first, that meant simply to dress herself, do the wash, and make a meal. After reaching those goals, she set her sights even higher including skiing, biking, and speaking publicly once again.

And now she, who has lit a fire within herself, has set out to light a fire in others, whether it's a spark, small flame, or all-out blaze. Through her inspirational speeches, she shares her new life lessons and personal convictions.

"These lessons have been very painful for me. But as a result, I can share them with you."

Do something new for yourself every day, she said Whether it's trying a new recipe, exploring a new place, or meeting a new person, challenge yourself.

Focus on a hopeful future and not on self-pity, is her second life lesson. Just one year before her accident, Dr. Rossetti sat in an audience in Columbus listening to Christopher Reeves deliver that same message: "Self-pity can be a dangerous trap," he said.

In the weeks following her own crippling ride, Dr. Rossetti found herself depressed and discouraged, and with little inspiration to regain her former vitality and spirit. But she soon realized that by sitting idle, she was wasting time, and took it upon herself to consciously change those negative thoughts into positive ones, an exercise she says everyone can practice on a daily basis.

Believe that the impossible just might be possible, she said, showing pictures of herself skiing, riding a bike, and snorkeling.

Her fourth life lesson is this: Allow more time to get things done and be patient with yourself. For Dr. Rossetti, patience meant taking wet clothes out of the washer with a special reacher, "one sock at a time." Look at the big picture and leave your anger behind, she advised. And adapt.

Finally, to lower stress, lower your expectations of other people, she said, a lesson she and her husband learned the hard way.

Not long after returning home, confined to a wheelchair, Dr. Rossetti would greet her husband each night with a lengthy "to-do" list. Overwhelmed himself, Mark only completed some of the tasks, leaving Dr. Rossetti frustrated. The frustration led to anger, and the anger to bickering. It was time for a change, she decided. So she lowered her expectations, shortened her "honey-do" list, and released some of the stress causing havoc not only in her life, but in the household as well.

Although Dr. Rossetti has many firsts to brag about including a shopping trip and escalator ride at City Center, and a mile-long walk down her street, she believes there is still much left to do.

She admits that not all of her wishes came true, not as a child and not as an adult. But she now lives life with conviction, passion, spirit, focus and direction.

And that for her is a happy ending.

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 Debbie Dunlap (rdunlap@insight.rr.com) is a freelance writer in Columbus, Ohio