Tag Archives: accident

Day 333: Coming Together

4 Mar

A few days ago I heard that a friend’s son was involved in an accident and that he was in the hospital.  The good news is that he is expected to fully recover; the “rest of the” news is that it will take some time to do so.

A friend of mine called the other day to ask if I would be interested in being “on call” for dinners as the family will have a lot to do when their son comes home, and of course, I said “yes.”  Today, when that same friend called to give me an update on the family, I asked if she thought a Chocolate Cream Pie would be appreciated.  We had a brief discussion, and decided, how could it not be?

I am always moved when, in moments like these, friends and community come together to help the person who is facing a difficult situation. In moments of crisis, we all want to help in some way or another, and usually preparing food is one area where we can actually “do something.”  Bringing food to someone in trouble is very common in many cultures; it is one need we can fill.

And so tonight I brought a Chocolate Cream Pie to our friends house (and put it in the cooler that was on the front porch) for the friends and family that will be there soon.  We send our love and good wishes for a speedy recovery and heartfelt thanks that the injuries weren’t much worse.

“There are no mistakes, no coincidences.  All events are blessings given to us to learn from.”  Elisabeth Kubler-Ross

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Day 97: We met accidentally

12 Jul

Last week I shared what happened when I decided to ride my bicycle to church. My day did not turn out as planned: instead I was hit by a car, spent time in the emergency room, and found out that I had a broken rib. A few days later at the doctors office, one of the doctor’s staff, Tiffany, asked me about the age of the driver of the car. I told her my guess and she said that the driver’s age would be on the crash report. And as it turned out, the driver’s birthday was today.

When I relayed this information to my friends and family, several immediately suggested that I bake a pie for Tom, the man who had hit me. Several others thought that this was going a bit too far with my pie project. Well, this morning I resolved to bake an an apple pie and present it to Tom.

I was a bit nervous about my decision and so I asked my son to come along with me. When we approached Tom’s door, he called out, “knock knock” because he had heard our footsteps. When Tom came to the door, he greeted us. I said “I don’t know if you remember me.” He said “Anyone carrying a pie can’t be all bad.” And then I told him how we had met. Immediately he apologized and I told him quickly that I had a broken rib but then I said, “and from the police report I found out that today is your birthday and so I made you a pie. Happy Birthday.” It took a moment before he responded, ” I am genuinely touched by your gesture. This means a lot to me.”

We spent a few minutes talking about baking, about life and children. He said that since I had baked something for him, he wanted to give us some of the Scottish Shortbread he had baked (which was delicious). Then he told us about a trip he was planning to take along the Alaskan Marine Highway. Tom told us how he hoped that his brother would accompany him on this voyage. It sounded like it would be a wonderful vacation.

I am very glad that I decided to bring Tom a pie. It was a sincere act of reconciliation; of forgiveness. I wish him an amazing adventure in Alaska – and hope that we meet again sometime – but hopefully not by accident.

Forgiveness is the fragrance that the violet sheds on the heal that has crushed it.
–Mark Twain

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