It Was a Day Like Any Other. When..

Not much stood out from the ordinary. June the 1^st of 2011 was the day. I remember being out with my son Jonas. He was 8 years old at the time. He and I were at the Health and Human Resources department in the process of renewing our medical and food assistance benefits. My mom had just been dropped off at the laundromat so she could take care those weekly duties just like she did every week. Like I mentioned, not much out of the norm. It was just a regular summer day- until it wasn’t.

That day was when my dad was involved in a single-vehicle car accident. It was a result of the medical condition he had been living and dealing with for the past 20 plus years-diabetes. This was not the first time he had been involved in a car accident due to his health problem. My dad was a good man- the type that looked out for his family and as the primary breadwinner, had that sense of responsibility to provide and keep on trying no matter what. His diabetes had never held him back from working and doing what he needed to do in order to keep the family afloat.

Unfortunately, on this day, his life and ours, changed indefinitely. Little did anyone know that this would be a heartbreaking experience that would drag on for seven months. That day, my dad’s sugar level dropped while driving. From prior experience, we can say that he then became confused and that his vision was impaired. As a result, my dad crashed head on into a rocky embankment- just a few minutes from home. Out of respect for my dad, and the pain he went through for the remainder of his life, I will leave out the details. Long story short, my dad never recovered from the injuries that he suffered due to this accident. I’m aware that it was the diabetes that for the most part did not allow his body to heal, but it was as a result of a car accident. If this accident would have been prevented, I can guarantee that my dad would be alive right now. For months, he would improve and then just when we all thought things were getting better, he would once again relapse and end up in ICU with life-threatening conditions. After 7 months, his heart stopped for the last time, and he passed on.

Having this first-hand experience has changed the way I look at life. I live with this loss every day. It’s something that I wouldn’t wish on anyone. If I learned anything it’s that life can change for anyone in an instant from one second to the next and that if you don’t have your health, you have nothing. All the good intentions in the world would prove to be worthless if you were confined to a hospital bed. Many don’t seem to understand how fragile we all are. Accidents happen every day- that we know. So you would think that people would get it.

I believe that through more in-depth driving courses, awareness should be made an even higher priority. Yes, it’s important to learn about the laws, speed limits, fines, and the risk of imprisonment. All these regulations serve a purpose, but a little extra something of what can happen after the fact, would add more value to what we already know or are there to learn. As driving courses continue to evolve into better sources of knowledge, upcoming and present-day drivers should be required to attend on a regular basis. When dealing with those involved in traffic violations, many are offered defensive driving as an option to dismiss the citation. Given this scenario, why not be proactive and instead of using it as a tool to try and remedy something that happened already, we use driving education to prevent accidents.

Becoming a safer driver can prove to be difficult, but not impossible. There are so many variables that can be mentioned, but I feel that it starts with the person behind the wheel. An increased awareness for one’s own medical condition or lack of sleep would only prove to be beneficial. With proper care of those details, a person can go in with their day in a safer manner. I understand that these are just two factors, but it’s two that are of upmost importance- especially when dealing with them while driving.

Certain measures should be taken when it comes to the prevention of deaths. It’s unbelievable how many more people die as a result of an accident in comparison to those who die at war. Maybe it’s that same type of awareness that keeps soldiers alive that should be instilled into the minds of people. The soldiers who have come back from wars have taken the proper measures to survive. I’m aware that not all of them make it, but the odds are there, and the studies clearly show. A person is more likely to die in an accident while commuting from one place to another- something that most of us do daily. With that being said, why not work on addressing those underlying issues from all perspectives and ensure that we all have a chance to wake up to another day.