"Mom, I just got in an accident. My car it totaled."
Thankfully, he was not injured severely, nor was anyone in the other car.
Over the past week, as we pieced together what happened from what Taylor remembered and what the police report said, it was apparent that God had been incredibly merciful. He had been going too fast and went slightly wide around a turn. A large box truck was in the other lane and got over as far as it could to avoid a collision.
It happened a mile or so from our house and we heard the sirens. When he called, he wouldn't tell us where he was because he thought I would freak out and said someone who witnessed it was driving him home. I had a gut feeling that those sirens were for him. It haunted me over the next few days as I realized they HAD been.
We continue to be incredibly thankful for God's protection and some valuable lessons learned.
IF:
- If Taylor's car had crossed the center line and had been fully in the other lane, the head on collision could have been catastrophic
- If Taylor had hit a smaller vehicle, there could have been severe injuries for the occupants.
- If Taylor's car had hit the truck six inches closer to the drivers side door, his injuries would have been much more severe. (The damage was mostly directly behind him)
BUT:
- The occupants of the box truck had no serious injuries.
- He walked away with no broken bones. He does have a concussion and neck strain, chest contusion, etc. But we are well aware that we could have spent the week planning a funeral.
- A friend had just told him to stop driving with his seat reclined so far back. THAT MORNING, he set his seat more upright. He says he doesn't know why. We do--because of God! If his seat had been reclined, he could have slipped from the seat belt and/or had a serious neck injury from the seat belt hitting him across the throat.
He is having some memory gaps from the concussion, but other than that, he is healing well. Mom and Dad are having some post-traumatic stress but mostly we are profoundly grateful that God chose to spare his life and the lives of everyone involved.
