Warning: If car accidents or pictures of them upset you, you will not enjoy this post :/
My little Ethel (the old-lady-gold PT Cruiser) rolled off the interstate 3 times, going 70 mph. Since I was moving it was FULL of stuff which flew all over the interstate and, well, me.
I won't get into the nitty gritty; as time has passed the details have become less important to me than the outcome. But it was terrifying. It feels like it was forever ago, and just yesterday. No one expects to be in a situation that threatens their life so when it happens it takes a while to process. At least it has for me. The truly amazing thing is that I was fine. Basically. For a few weeks I looked and felt rough, but no broken bones or long term serious issues. Shoot, I didn't even break a nail. I discovered later that I was much more prone to motion sickness afterward, but I'm not sure if the cause is physical or psychological. These pictures capture the worst of the physical, and let's be real, they're not even that bad all things considered.
There were many things that happened that made it obvious the only reason I survived at all was because it was God's will. At the emergency room, they ran every test possible because doctors were certain I couldn't have walked out of that with just scraps, bruises, and soreness. Thankfully, that's all it was. I'm not sure where you stand in your faith, but this accident has become a large part of my testimony.
And thus, today is Life Day. Today is a day to be extra grateful for the many opportunities I have been given in this world. It's a day of thankfulness for a family who put their lives on hold to come rescue me and nurse me back to full health, while dealing with my emotionally fragile state. It's a day of overwhelming love for the friends who expressed their support and concern through prayers, good thoughts, comments, calls, and many other ways. It's a day that I take a break from worrying about job hunting, apartment searching, and #firstworldproblems to say thank you for this gift of a life and the blessing that it is to live it. This is not to trivialize the situation, or ignore the effects of it, but rather to reclaim a positive attitude over fear and a hopefulness over danger. I'm where I'm supposed to be, while I'm supposed to be here.
I encourage you to have your own Life Day. Maybe it can coordinate with a life-changing moment for you, or an extra happy memory. Or you can borrow mine and make August 5th your Life Day too.
Sheila
P.S. Let's all remember Ethel as little endeavorer she was :) You can also see her in action here.
Everyone should have a life day. I think I will make one for myself minus the life threatening situation. Glad you walked away from that and sorry you lot Ethel. Have you named all your cars? Most of mine had names
ReplyDeleteI would say if you can celebrate Life Day and avoid the life-threatening situation, all the better :)
DeleteI have always named my cars and I love knowing other people do too! I miss Ethel, but my current car, Betty, has been pretty darn good to me as well. Thanks for reading!