Horrific Moments, Tender Mercies

Sleep is not on my side tonight...I am beyond exhausted, but anytime I lay down in the dark with silence around me I am consumed by flashes of the horrible seconds when I thought I had either killed myself or my children. The sound of their voices is the worst...and at the same time the sweetest. I remember as I realized we were going off the road and starting to roll thinking: "Please let me stay alive. Please let me not lose consciousness. Please let me survive this so I can help my kids." I remember finally stopping and landing upside down. I just wanted to hear my kid's voices. I knew if I could hear them then they were alive and alert. I was hanging there with my hands above me so my head wouldn't be pressed against the roof of the car and yelling out to my kids words of encouragement...trying to calm them and reassure them that we were okay because we were alive.

I don't know how long we hung there. It felt like an eternity and yet like the blink of an eye before complete strangers swarmed my car and started pulling out my kids. Noah was hysterical and yelling for someone to rescue Lola because the seat belt was cutting into her throat and she was screaming that she couldn't breathe. He wanted her rescued first. He is every bit our protector--always has been. I kept screaming for people to pull my kids out and leave me there. I was clueless as to how I would get out. I looked up and saw blood all over my hands and thought I had some kind of head injury because my air bag never deployed and I clearly remember the windshield shattering--the glass hitting my face and landing in my mouth,

Once I was helped out I just sat there on the embankment in shock. My hands were covered in blood. My hair was caked with mud and blood. Someone came up to me, told me he was a doctor and proceeded to check my head and wounds. I kept asking to hug my kids. I wanted them to know I was alive and okay. I needed them to know I was close by. I looked to my left and saw them a few feet away being held and soothed by some angel of a woman. I saw Lola praying her little heart out. And then the guilt set in.

I could've killed one or all of them...or myself. I had caused my young, sweet children to experience something so traumatic and painful--the very antithesis of what my job is as their mother. I had no clue if I had hit any other cars on my way off the road--if others were injured. I knew Curran was just a couple of minutes away waiting for us to show up. And I replayed our last phone conversation minutes before as I left the house. I didn't say "I love you" back when we ended our phone call. I refused to take Lincoln because I didn't want to deal with construction and I almost missed the drive out there all together because I was distracted with other stuff at home--Why did I decide to go? Why did I round up the kids quickly and shove them in the car for an inconsequential trip that we could have done any other time or day?

It's funny the things that will go through your mind in moments like this. Though they seem lame and superficial these are just some of my thoughts:

We can't afford another car. I love this car.

I need a new BYU sticker.

My gas tank was full. I don't want to lose all that gas!

All of the book fair teacher wish list donations from other parents and the donated books to Children's Hospital and all my other book fair stuff is lost and I am responsible. Parents/teachers are gonna hate me.

My glasses flew off my head. We all lost our shoes, Lola was hit by all the boxes of books in the back, has bruises and scratches all over her face and body and  nasty seat belt burn on her neck. Noah's face was burned by the airbag and it knocked his loose tooth so he now gets a visit from the tooth fairy tonight. Millie escaped unscathed. The car seat did it's job. She was in tight and had not a scratch on her. I was strapped to a board with a neck brace because of my head pain. At the hospital our trauma was downgraded after a few examinations.

How very blessed we are that within 3 hours we all walked out of the hospital together. How blessed we are that our family rushed to our side and that my husband has the priesthood and we all had blessings. I was cited for careless driving because rather than honking my horn and stepping on the brakes to avoid hitting the car coming into my lane I chose to swerve. But I tell you what, I will happily take that citation cause we are all alive and okay. How we managed to not hit any other cars before we rolled off the embankment is beyond me. This too I count as a huge blessing.

And yet the guilt consumes me when I lay in bed. We are in no position to buy another car or deal with medical expenses. I can't imagine the weight on Curran's shoulders. And yet, he sits there and constantly reassures me that we will be okay, because that's the kind of faith he has and I'm grateful for that. I have no desire to get a car any time soon. I want to stay home and hold my kids. I want them to know how awful I feel that I put them through this...How my heart aches because they are in pain and unable to sleep and constantly shedding tears as they too relive those horrific moments. Noah keeps saying he forgives me. I know he means that he doesn't blame me, but I honestly feel like I need forgiving. I have spent all night thanking my Father in Heaven we are all okay--wondering how we survived this with so little damage. But the silence and darkness are too much for me right now, I've shed a few tears, but I've been trying to be strong and show my kids how we should focus on the mercies of God and be so, so grateful we're here together. I know at some point I need to let myself feel all that I've been trying to suppress, but for tonight I just want to forget it ever happened.