Do the Right Thing!

As parents we all want our kids to be successful. We want them to be happy. We want them to thrive. We want them to change the world. We want them to be safe. We want to protect them from the bad stuff. Ultimately, we want them to be decent, productive human beings.

One of the biggest barriers to all that good stuff happening for our kids is often other people. Unfortunately, there are lots of people who are not decent human beings. Call it bad parenting, call it poor choices, call it whatever you want. Some people are just plain rotten.

The girls experienced this firsthand last night when they were the victims of a hit and run on the freeway. Some of you are thinking, “WAIT! What? The Big One and the Little One cannot be old enough to be in a car by themselves.” Trust me, I feel that deeply, especially this morning.

Yet, the reality is the Big One is 16 and has had her driver’s license for about 8 months. The girls went to small group at church last night. On their way home, another driver came over into their lane, side swiping the passenger side of the car. After the impact, the other driver knew they did something wrong and swerved over to the right lane and accelerated at a high rate of speed to escape the situation.

Thank God, the Husband is an incredible driving instructor and taught the Big One very well. She maintained composure during the incident. She maintained control of her car. She managed to avoid hitting the car that was directly next to her on the left. She allowed her car to take the impact, kept steady and straight in her lane as there was nowhere for her to go without hitting someone else. Of course, the Good Lord above was with them and kept them safe. He protected them and those around them.

When you consider they were traveling around 70 mph, the magnitude of what could have happened is beyond terrifying. When the Little One called me right after it happened. My heart dropped. It was one of the worst phone calls a parent can receive. Feeling utterly helpless as I listened to my two hysterical teenagers recalling what had just happened. Knowing that at that moment I could not fix anything. They needed to maneuver the next 15 minutes alone as the Husband and I drove to meet them.

We remained on the phone with the Little One as we drove to find them. The sheer terror in the Big One’s voice was gut wrenching. The Little One went back and forth from trying to direct the Husband and I to their location, while also reassuring the Big One that it was all somehow going to be okay. All the while she was trying to maintain her composure as she was smack in the middle of helping us and helping her sister.

We are eternally grateful for their safety. Physically they are okay. Emotionally and psychologically, this one will sting for a while. By the grace of the God, the Big One drove to school today. She faced a huge fear and conquered it with her sister by her side.

I am optimistic that we are doing our part to raise good human beings. So today, I will focus on letting the light of my girls’ shine. It’s a struggle because my mom-heart is so incredibly angry at the person who hit them and drove off. We’ve always taught the girls that we all screw up and we all make mistakes. The best way to move forward is to admit those mistakes and learn from them. I only wish the jerk who hit my girls had learned that same lesson.

It is often very difficult to do the right thing, however, that’s what makes us good people. Heaven knows we need more good people in the world. Whatever happens to you today, please do the right thing and be a good person.

If by some remote chance you were on the 8 East bound last night around 9:35 pm, between Hotel Circle and Mission Center Road and saw anything helpful, please reach out!