It happened right in front of me. She fishtailed left, compensated right, and went left again, but spun around and went flying into the snow bank backwards, tapping her tail against the guardrail. I've been wanting to mount a camera in my work van to catch moments like this, and here, it happened right in front of me with no way to record it.
I braked carefully, and pulled the van to the side of the exit ramp with flashers on. The car behind me had jacked his brakes up and spun around, but was able to stay on the ramp. He drove away safely. I threw on my jacket and climbed through the snow to where she sat. Still trying to accept what had just happened, she rolled her window down and looked at me in disbelief.
"I have to get out of here," she said. "I have to work today, or I won't get paid for today or tomorrow, either!"
It was the same for me. Tomorrow was New Year's Day, and I have to work the day before and after to get vacation pay. The cry in her voice was noticeable. Her head was down. I couldn't see her face past her long hair. She said she wasn't hurt, she just needed to get to work. It was easy to look at her situation and know that she would at least be quite late. I put my hand lightly on her shoulder, and asked her just to take a few breaths. She looked at her shaking hands, and I assured her that the adrenaline rush was normal, and it would subside.
I asked her if she had AAA, and she said yes. While she called them, I called 911, who assured me someone would be there soon. While talking to the tow company, she asked how her car was. I trudged around back and saw the crumpled tail light assembly and rear quarter panel. The tire looked untouched, as did the trunk area. I told her it looked driveable, but she would probably want it checked by a more knowledgeable person. Again came the comment about having to be at work. It was only twelve minutes from home to work, how could this happen?
A Christian, divorced, and living paycheck to paycheck. Her situation hit home pretty hard. I've been there. No longer divorced, but still living paycheck to paycheck. There wasn't despair in her voice, but frustration, and disbelief. I stayed with her until I saw flashing lights approaching in the distance. I asked if I could pray with her, and she said yes. It was a short prayer, one for peace and to see God's hand somehow working in this. The officer walked up and basically excused me. I left with a heavy heart.
There are awful, terrible tragedies that happen in this world. The news is filled with death and destruction. Calamity. Ruined lives. Not reported and less noticed are the little things that keep us on edge. A stomach bug that allows us to work, but makes it a miserable experience. A broken stove forcing cold dinners on us. A disagreement with someone close that doesn't turn into an argument, but gets buried for later retrieval. A decision that turns sour and bites us because it was based on a lack of pertinent information.
A patch of black ice can put us on edge. We watched numerous cars come around the ramp, see the situation before them, try to brake, and fishtail a bit before slowing down and proceeding. The accident wasn't her fault. I was behind her, so I can attest to the fact that she wasn't speeding. It was simply an unfortunate event, and it put her on edge.
I felt a little helpless as I drove away, wanting to do more, but there wasn't much else I could do. She wasn't hurt, the car was probably driveable, the police were there, and a tow truck was on the way to get her out of the snowdrift. I was on the clock. I can't have passengers in my work vehicle. I don't have reserves of cash to hand out. I did what I could, and I believe it helped, hopefully more than I know.
There will be many events that happen to us this coming new year, and some of them will put us in a proverbial snowdrift. Stuck, helpless, dependent on others to keep us sane and pull us out. I believe we can decide now, to some degree, what our behavior will be when it happens. We can decide now where and in whom we put our trust. We can also decide how much we are willing to put ourselves out there, ready to help when the need arises.
I can't prepare for every event that is to come, but I can decide who I am as a person, and resolve to not compromise my character, but to fulfill and improve it.
