24 Years Ago

Twenty-four years ago today, I had an appointment for a strep culture. I was one of those kids who “carried” strep throat. I never had symptoms but I ended up giving it to every kid I came in contact with. So, I went to the doctor to be tested from time to time.

Before going to the doctor, however, we decided we wanted to go to the swimming pool. But, we needed to go to my grandmother’s house first, for some reason.

My mom was babysitting that day. She and I were dressed alike, wearing khaki shorts and pink shirts. Mom’s shirt was from her only trip to the beach, the year before. I don’t remember where mine was from.

We all hopped in our little white Pontiac to head over to Nanny’s. Mom was driving and I was in the front seat. Kim was in between Sam and Summer, our very good friends whom Mom babysat from the time Sam started school. Sam and Summer always buckled up — their mom insisted on it. We didn’t. It was 1986, things were different back then.

We were traveling along what we call “River Road”. It’s a narrow, winding road that runs by the river on the way to my grandmother’s house as well as many other relatives. Just after we crossed the tiny one-lane bridge, another car ran us off the road. I’m not sure what happened. I think Mom swerved out of the ditch to keep from hitting a mail box and we skidded across the road and hit a tree head-on. The tree kept us from going down an embankment and into the river.

I don’t remember the actual impact.

I remember all of us screaming, seemingly in unison.

My mom was bleeding.

I tried to open the door but it was jammed. Later, we found that the impact had caused the back door to overlap the front door keeping it from opening. I looked back to see Sam’s window rolled down and, without thinking, I climbed over the seat and onto his lap and out his window. I don’t really remember thinking about it or why I did it but I do remember that straddling his window was uncomfortable.

Thankfully, by the time I was out the window, other people were there. I don’t even know who they were now. Seems like my parents knew them. They lived down the road and they had heard the crash so they came to check out what happened.

There were a couple of ambulances.

They got my mom out of the car and strapped her down. They put her in one ambulance. Sam was in the other. He had internal injuries (bruising, I think). Summer’s arm was broken. Kim, my sister, had a scratch on her shin. She also peed in her pants. I had a bad cut on my elbow from hitting the radio as I brought my arm up in defense and my jaw was really bruised from hitting the dash.

I remember my mom being strapped down and giving numbers to try to reach my dad at the farm. Back then, there were no cell phones so if he wasn’t in the office (and he rarely was) then there was no telling where you might find him. I think my great-aunt ended up finding him.

Kim and I rode in the ambulance with mom. I remember being so scared and thinking she was going to die.

Mom had cuts all over her face from hitting the windshield. The windshield had an imprint of her face in it. She had to have stitches around her eye area and her lip. She picked glass out of her face a tongue forever, it seemed. She had broken ribs and collapsed lung (or lungs, I can’t remember) from hitting the steering wheel. She was sore for weeks. Her sense of smell and taste are still messed up.

I had to have stitches in my elbow. I screamed. I cried. I kicked and tried to get away. Lots of people held me down.

My aunt picked us up from the hospital so dad could stay with Mom. We spent several days at my Nanny’s while Mom was in the hospital. I drank lots of soup because I couldn’t move my jaw. Dad came to visit us, in between visits with Mom.

My uncle let dad drive his Jeep until we could get another car. The Pontiac was totaled.

The other driver did stop when we crashed. She had two teenage sons. They all said she did not run us off the road. It was our word against theirs. Sam was 9, I was 8, Summer was 7, and Kim had just turned 5 the day before. They believed the teenagers. No charges were filed against the other driver.

I am so thankful that God spared us all that day, 24 years ago. I am so thankful that tree was there to stop us from going in the river. I am so thankful that, despite the fact that we weren’t buckled up, our injuries were not fatal. It could have been so different.

I never get in my car that I don’t instinctively buckle up. I haven’t ridden in a car without buckling my seat belt one single time since that day. None of us have.