In a couple of weeks, it will have been four years since I was involved in a serious car accident. Going 75mph, I was in a head-on collision with a drunk driver going the wrong direction on the interstate. He fled the horrific scene. How or why, I am alive and well is more miracle than mystery to me. My life was spared, and without sustaining debilitating injuries. No doubt guardian angels were with me. The whole experience is still a reminder to me that every choice we make results in consequences or rewards.
The damages I sustained were more mental than bodily. All the physical therapy in the world wasn’t going to heal my mind, or mend my emotions. Anger and rage could have consumed me had I let them go unchecked. Instead, I chose to let go of the negativity. Like a helium balloon on a string, I released my grip, allowing my anger, sadness, and self-pity to float away. Choosing to forgive the drunk driver freed me from dragging around a hefty load of useless resentment. I had lost enough time, relinquishing more to be angry wasn’t something I was willing to do.
What happened to the other driver, I cannot say. How he chose to live his life before or after the accident is none of my business. All I know is that he made choices. Every choice we make in life results in consequences or rewards. Hopefully, the accident gave him a reason to choose to change, an opportunity to do his life differently.
Harboring anger would have been more damaging for my family and I. The choice to let go allowed me to move on with my life. I will continue to make choices that result in the reward. It is enough that I am alive and still able to enjoy life.
