In an Instant

As I was driving home form Sam's Club this evening, I passed an accident that had happened not long before I arrived. There were at least three cars involved in the accident. One of the cars sat off to the side of the road and a couple of people stood outside of the car. At least I should say, one of the two people was trying to stand. I think that the poor woman was so badly shaken that she seem to be having a difficult time comprehending the situation.

Watching this woman reminded me of how quickly our circumstances can change. One minute we can be driving down the road, and the next the life can change. I experienced this personally last May when I was driving to school. It was the last regular day of the semester and I was thinking about the fact that the Mini was going to roll over 100,000 miles on the way home. The next thing I knew, there was a dog right in front of the car. I hit the dog, successfully pulled the car off to the side of the road, and my day had suddenly changed. Except for the death of the dog and damage to the Mini, no one experienced any injuries. It took just over a month before the Mini's repairs were complete, so the car did not roll 100,000 miles until July.

Earlier this week another more tragic reminder of the fragility of life occurred. One of the advisors for Phi Theta Kappa (a two year honor society for community college students) experienced the loss of her son-in-law in a car accident. These are all great reminders that we need to make the most of every situation. Nothing in life is guaranteed (except our salvation and God's love). We should hug our family and friend's more and make sure we spend our time with them wisely.