This morning I had a flashback of an accident in which 2 of my daughters were hit by a pickup truck some 18 yrs ago.
Scenaro that afternoon in Tucson AZ: I was attending our jewelry business location on Speedway Ave. Business being slow [as usual], I happened to be working on my acrylic painting, "Jungle Party". Right across the street at the crosswalk of Speedway & Treat Ave, Sarah & Julie, returning from the library were crossing when a pickup truck hit them both.
Ironically, this was same day of Iraq's 1st Scud missile attack, opening day of Desert Storm. Daughter #1 had a knee injury, though able to hop away & come alert me the news. Daughter #3 ended up with a broken femur and a gash to the head, resulting in her having to wear a bodycast for 6 wks.
Daughter #2 was in Ohio with my husband who was pursuing additional business interests [as usual].
The girls' pain and my self inflicted guilt for letting them go to the library on foot caused me great anxiety, opening this morning's fresh tears of regret.
The painting, finished and framed hangs in our now current successful location, Wexford Jewelers in Cadillac, MI.
Speedway Jewelry & Repair no longer exists. One morning I arrived to open for the day to find the lock changed due to nonpayment of the rent. This only added to the forfeitures our family experienced as a result of the poor business ethics and over-expansion.
sounds scary, it seems like that painting would always remind you of that!
ReplyDeletei remember that day so well, mom, yet some parts are blocked out. i remember the kind man standing to the side of the road with a concerned look on his face. he had gathered our library books from all over the intersection and was also holding our headbands- julie's was broken.
ReplyDeletei remember that i had drilled my thumbnail that very day and threaded 3 jump rings thru the holes, and as i lay on the x-ray table i flicked them. it was at the moment, with my knee kind of dully throbbing, and my thigh burning from contact with the road, that the x-ray tech ran out of the room saying "they bombed iraq? no way! it's happening!!" he proceeded to forget about me for a little while as he and his colleague watched the news. it was so surreal, lying there with a broken knee, not even knowing what had become of my sister, flicking those stupid jump rings on that hot pink painted thumbnail, and knowing that somewhere else in the world people were getting bombed.
what a day.
ps- julie also broke her collarbone.
actually it does occasionally....
ReplyDeleteoh right!, a broken collarbone too! thanks, sarah jane for the added colorful details that time & trauma caused me to forget, or that I had no way of knowing. It all seems like such a blur in the memory now..all the while, God took care of us all.
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