In just a moment
As kids grow up and begin to break the apron strings, they yearn for the freedom that comes with the license to operate a vehicle. It is tough to let go knowing that life can change in just an instant.
It comes with the screech of tires and the sound of breaking glass. It is every parent’s fear and some parent’s worst nightmare. Families are shattered in a fraction of a second.
As a parent, I ache as two of my daughters come to terms with their own mortality. One is grieving and one is praying.
Kara Taylor is not a familiar name in Port Lavaca, but she was my youngest daughter’s friend. Kara, a junior at Little Elm High School, was killed in an auto accident early Sunday morning when the vehicle she was driving collided with a vehicle traveling the wrong way on the Dallas North Tollway. The driver of the second vehicle remains in critical condition. A school mourns and two families are shattered.
Monday afternoon, I was traveling home from a weekend trip when I answered my cell phone to the wrenching sounds of my daughter’s sobs. It took me a moment to realize that this was not Ashley, my youngest daughter, but instead my middle daughter Schelly. Hilary Braun is her friend.
“There was an accident, I think it was Hilary,” Schelly cried as she asked me to see if I could confirm it.
This week three local families struggle to pick up the pieces as Hilary and her friend Lynn Morales remain in critical condition in Corpus Christi and San Antonio, respectively. A school prays and families are shattered.
In this week of tragedy, my heart aches for Hilary, Lynn and Kara. I pray that Hilary and Lynn make full recoveries. I pray that Kara is resting peacefully with our Father in Heaven. My heart aches for these families and for the drivers of the other vehicles. One must know that Aaron Schultz, although not at fault, must be struggling with the “what ifs.”
Some days it is tough to be a parent. Every day it is scary to watch one’s child drive down the road. We understand that driving is a rite of passage of sorts during a teen’s pursuit of adulthood. Still we never quite breathe a sigh of relief until our child pulls safely into the drive.
Families are shattered in just a moment.