Many people including myself take for granted the ability to live another day. Ever since I was a little girl, my parents insisted I prayed before every trip we took in the car. May 12th 2023 was no different, I prayed the St. Christopher prayer as I stepped into my moms car for a seemingly fun Friday night out. However, as we passed the main intersection to our neighborhood, we were hit by a hard force that sent me flying into the dashboard without warning. Driving safely and having a great awareness to your surroundings is essential when operating any car no matter your age.
All I could see was smoke filling my moms GMC Yukon XL. There was a harsh pounding in my head accompanied by my loss of hearing. Throughout my medical classes in high school, I’d learned about fight or flight response, and that day I chose to fight. As I looked over to my mom she was covered in blood on her face and arms. In the moment, I was not fearful and surprisingly calm. When I walked to her side the door was jammed shut from the impact. My mom and my sister were stuck in the car and I could not break them out. By the grace of God, a tow truck driver happened to be on the other side of the intersection when this all happened and immediately ran to our aid. To this day I’ve never seen this man again, but he truly was my hero. After he broke my mom and my sister out of the car, he called 911 while I attempted to call my dad with complete loss of hearing in one ear. Everyone arriving at the scene was such a blur, I was being interviewed and questioned constantly. Despite being overwhelmed, I still couldn’t feel any pain even with not being able to hear in one ear. I made sure the medics focused on my mom who was visibly bleeding and had a broken arm. The exact time from the cops arriving to us being escorted off is not clear to me due to the immense amount of trauma I had in my head from the accident. While my mom was taken away by ambulance, my sister and I rode with my dad to the ER. Luckily, my sister was in a four point harness car seat and left the er without a single scrape. I, on the other hand, was not so fortunate. Due to my airbag not deploying, I suffered a major concussion from hitting my head on the dashboard in front of me. Additionally, they immediately noticed I had a ruptured eardrum from my hearing loss. These two things were most apparent, but surprisingly I still didn’t feel any pain or discomfort at this point. My doctors claimed it was from the adrenaline rush I was having. Next, I was wheeled up to get a ct scan to ensure I didn’t have internal bleeding. Thankfully, I had no internal bleeding, but I had dislocated my pelvis. That night, an orthopedic set my pelvis back into place and for three months following the accident I was in physical therapy and had to stop playing club soccer. I was told I possibly wouldn’t be able to have natural child birth because of my pelvis being dislocated at one point. For some reason though, I felt fearless. I knew that whatever God had in store for me was ultimately what was best. For months after the accident I questioned why God would do this to me of all people, but through this hard time I learned so many life lessons. For one, I learned the importance and power of prayer. When the firefighters and ems arrived on the scene they said it was shocking how our car didn’t flip and it was truly a miracle. We had the forces of physics against us, but the power of prayer was within us. Another amazing thing I learned from this experience was to always be grateful for everyday I walk this Earth. Before the accident, I found myself wishing days away and not truly being content and happy with the life in front of me. Now I feel like I am genuinely so appreciative for every happy moment in my life. Lastly, from the accident I learned the importance of being a safe driver not only for myself, but for those around me. At this time, I was fifteen years old and had my learner's permit. Through a drivers ed program and my parents I had been told repeatedly about the importance of awareness while driving. However, the accident really woke me up to the dangers of being on your phone and not paying attention to the road and cars around you. I do not hold a grudge against the guy that hit us, but I learned from him now to be a more cautious and responsible driver. Now that I am sixteen almost seventeen and fully healed from the accident I can see with transparency why God would involve me in the accident in the first place.
From the moment you’re born God undoubtedly has a path and plan for your life. While no one wants to be in a car accident, that incident taught me very important lessons about being aware while driving and how important and powerful prayer truly is. No matter your age, being aware and safe while driving is essential when you are in control of a motor vehicle.