A young friend of mine had a car accident on Friday, here in Tulsa, Oklahoma. The winter weather – sleet and freezing rain – had been falling most of the day and when something went wrong on the road, I don’t know what, she rolled her car over. She thought she had died because all she saw was white, then she realized it was snow and ice everywhere. She ended up hanging upside down in her car by her seatbelt. Her dog was in the car with her and she thought he was dead as well until she reached out for it and it responded.
She posted photos of the strangulation-like raw marks all over her neck and upper chest from the seat belt. It was not a pretty sight. She can barely move her neck.
The lessons learned? Don’t take life for granted. Pay attention to important things. Don’t delay telling people how you appreciate them. These are not uncommon lessons. We hear them over and over. My hope is that my young friend takes action and turns these new lessons into the habits of her life.
Because it isn’t learning a lesson that is hard. It is becoming the lesson that is.
Say the word.
Drawing and commentary © Marty Coleman
“One kind word can warm three winter months.” – Japanese proverb