Tag Archives: Accident

Crashing into the New Year

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Have you experienced a scare with your child?

I was out of town when I got a text message from my oldest, “we were in an accident.” It took me a second to register what I was reading. I knew my oldest was out of town with friends hiking and they were likely on their way back home. Was he telling me after the fact (the accident happened while they were away) or had it just happened? I texted back asking if they were okay and what happened. No response. I tried calling, no answer. I decided to try FaceTime— knowing it has a different ring and might get my son’s attention.

My question regarding timing of the accident was answered when my son answered. He had a lot of blood running down the left side of his face. He must have seen my expression of surprise and fear, because he quickly said, “don’t worry, mom, I can see fine out of my left eye.” The airbags had deployed after they hit some ice and their car spun into a snowbank and stopped after hitting the rear of a semi. 😳 My son wasn’t driving, his friend who was was hurt badly. My son kept stopping our conversation to yell to his friend not to move. It was terrifying to see my son go through this, know one of his friends was badly hurt and to be so far away. I sent him photos of insurance card and he confirmed help was on the way. I got off the phone with him and immediately reached out to my husband, who was closer to where my son was and could get to him.

The next few hours were hard. It was a waiting game to make sure everyone was okay. My son and another friend, who was riding in the backseat, were treated at the scene and dropped off at the closest exit. Their friend, who was driving, was sent to a hospital about 90 miles away. The unknown (his friend’s condition, how were his parents going to be notified, (as we don’t know them), and was everyone going to be okay) was toughest.

My husband got to the boys and was able to get them home, while their friend required to be hospitalized for a few days. My son hasn’t really wanted to talk about the accident since it happened, which is understandable, but my husband and I have told him repeatedly how glad we are that he is okay.

We can’t keep our kids fully safe, regardless of the precautions we take, or lessons we instill. They hit a patch of ice, which can happen to anyone. I was reminded of the fragility of life and grateful my son and his friends have more days ahead of them. I’m aware, that’s not always the case.

My son has a better appreciation for driving in snow and ice and the caution that’s needed. I’m guessing he’ll avoid driving in wintry conditions for the foreseeable future, which, honestly brings me some relief, though accidents can happen rain, snow/ice, or shine.

I’m reminded of how fortunate I am for every day I get with my kids, and how lucky and blessed I am to have them as we come into the New Year.

What are you thankful for as we move into another year?

Spilt Milk

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The phrase “don’t cry over spilt milk” took on new meaning for me this week. I brought my computer into the kitchen on Sunday morning with the plan of getting some writing done after breakfast. Instead of moving immediately into my writing, I invited my oldest son to come join me at the computer so we could watch some sports highlights that he had missed (due to his bedtime) from the night before.  My husband brought my son’s breakfast over to him to eat on the island where we were sitting including a glass of milk. My son and I finished watching our highlights and I got up to wash the dishes. A few minutes later I heard my son exclaim, “Uh-oh, sorry Mom.” I turned around to see what he was referring to. I quickly spotted the glass of milk laying across my keyboard with most of its contents now seeping into my computer. There was a momentary pause on my part. Did that just happen I thought. After I determined the answer was a resounding “yes” I quickly picked up the glass and started to towel off my machine. I turned the keyboard upside down and did everything I could think of to dry it off. I reassured my son everything was okay. I honestly thought the computer was going to be fine. I even powered it back on about fifteen minutes later without any problems.

Two days later I pulled out my machine to do some work on it. I hadn’t used it since I had powered it on after the milk spill. When I opened the computer I noticed there might be a problem. There was milk residue on the screen and on the keyboard. I thought I had gotten all the milk off, but clearly I hadn’t. Then I tried turning the computer on. It turned on, but wouldn’t let me log in. I was getting a strange battery empty signal (even though the computer was fully charged), and the cap lock key was stuck in the ON position. I shut the machine down and tried again. The second attempt had the same issues and the computer fan was now making a loud noise I’d never heard before. I knew the machine was in trouble, so I shut it down and quickly starting scrolling through my phone for a computer repair shop.  For anyone who has gone through a similar experience, you know that you first have to take your computer in to be diagnosed ($) and then pay someone to fix it ($$$). The milk spill damaged the keyboard requiring it to be replaced.  It took a while for the cost of this accident to sink in. Wow! I thought, I had no idea an accident like this could cost so much.

When I got home, I wanted to talk with my son. While what happened was an accident I wanted him to be aware of what happened as a result. I believed it was an opportunity for him to learn and us to grow together. I didn’t see anything positive coming from getting mad at or making my son feel terrible for the damage done and the financial burden we incurred. He didn’t mean to spill the milk and none of us had any idea what might happen if he did. We all learned a lesson that day. My son learned that when we get anything liquid on Mom’s computer it can cost more than what the Lego Star Wars Death Star set costs (my son understands what this means. He has wanted this set for a while, and we had to explain even Santa couldn’t afford it!), and my husband and I learned that no one can have any liquid around our electronics, and if we do, we need to understand the risk.

We had a very calm discussion about the whole thing. While having an unexpected expense wasn’t easy to take, it was easier to get through when I reminded myself, its just money. Yes, I’ll need to work a little harder to make up for what was lost, but I can’t put a dollar amount on going through this experience with my child.

The damaged computer and bill that followed could have made me cry, but instead I grew. In my opinion, it was worth every cent.

How do handle unexpected accidents? How have you helped your child learn from the experience?