When I Stopped Taking Small Things for Granted

Most accidents happen in the blink of an eye. Ours was no exception.

 It was summer vacation and my husband and I were going away with the kids to the mountains. We looked forward to delicious barbeques, picturesque views, and lazy afternoons at the pool.

Our drive down was uneventful, and we thankfully arrived at our accommodation and set the aircon on to maximum. The sticky heat and thick humidity did nothing to dull our enthusiasm. We headed to bed for an early night, unaware of what tomorrow would bring.

We got out bright and early the next morning to the zoo, our four kids in tow. What a joy to breathe in the mountain air and to be away from the city gridlock! We admired the majestic lions, shrank away from the fearsome tigers, and ate a hearty lunch. Then it was time to pile in the car and head home. My husband drove along the winding road without a worry. All was well in the world. As he approached a shopping center, he thought it would be nice to stop and buy some watermelon. He slowed down to turn, not noticing the van speeding behind us. We felt the van before we saw it. It slammed into the back of the car and sent it spinning. My son screamed, my daughter cried, and I closed my eyes and said the Shema.

Our car was written off, never to travel the roads again, but something inside of me shifted. Our story could have ended so differently. Hashem had been abundantly kind to us on that fateful summer day. It was time to look for His hand in the events of my everyday life and to stop taking things for granted. I thanked Him for my children, I thanked Him for my husband, and I thanked Him for all the many blessings in my life.

As our car spun out of control on the quiet road, I thought of the many traffic accidents that had claimed too many lives over the years. Our car careened across lanes and landed forcefully against a metal fence. With a terrified shriek I checked that everyone was ok. Miraculously, everyone was. The window next to my nine-year old son was smashed but he was fine. My husband was shaken up but otherwise okay. I was in shock but unharmed, and my unborn baby was perfectly fine too.

As we sat on the side of the road waiting for help, a shop-owner from a nearby store came to help us. “Do you know that this is the fourth accident this week, and the other three were fatal?” He told us. My eyes opened in wonder as his words penetrated my consciousness. Our car landed less than a meter from a giant crater in the ground. What it was doing there, who knows, but had our car landed inside of it, I shudder to think what would have happened.

Our car was written off, never to travel the roads again, but something inside of me shifted. Our story could have ended so differently. Hashem had been abundantly kind to us on that fateful summer day. It was time to look for His hand in the events of my everyday life and to stop taking things for granted. I thanked Him for my children, I thanked Him for my husband, and I thanked Him for all the many blessings in my life.

Since then, I haven’t stopped thanking Him. I’m grateful for the big things, I’m grateful for the small things and I’m grateful for everything in between.

No longer could I take life for granted for tomorrow isn’t promised to anyone.