Deja Vu
Deja Vu
This morning as I was driving between client sites, I was listening to the local public radio station. There is pledge drive running and although we probably contribute an average of about once per year, I mostly listen to another station during these fund raisers. The radio shows during the fund drives, however, are usually especially good in between the pleas for money so I was tuning in every few minutes.
The part of the show I caught this morning was an interview by Terri Gross with a psychologist, Dr. Dan Gottleib, from Philadelphia. He was talking about his practice and his books. While he was very interesting, the most intriguing part of their discussion was the story of an automobile accident he in 1979. While driving on the Pennsylvania turnpike about an hour west of Philadelphia, a wheel came off a truck, also traveling on the turnpike, and landed on top of and crushing his car. His neck was broken and he was paralyzed from the chest down. He went on to become very successful as a radio show host, newspaper columnist, and psychology practioner. I looked up some reviews of his books later and I may read one of them, as the reviews are quite good.
At the end of the day, I was driving home on I 30 going west just outside of Dallas. I glanced in the rearview mirror to see a rooster tail shower of sparks probably 10 feet wide and much longer extending from a large truck just behind me. The truck had lost its front left wheel. Although the truck was probably going close to 60 miles per hour, it seemed to be mostly in control and slowing as it continued straight down the road.
This stretch of interstate has three concrete barricades probably 12-15 feet apart in the middle. I did not see the wheel leave the pavement but I did see it high in the air over all of the barricades and crash onto the roof of an oncoming full size pickup truck. There was too much traffic to stop or turn back. About and an hour later I came back the same way on my way to a baseball game. The pickup roof was crushed almost to the dash.
I do not know what happened to the driver or passengers in the pickup, but it made me think of how life can change so dramatically and forever in just an instant.
This morning as I was driving between client sites, I was listening to the local public radio station. There is pledge drive running and although we probably contribute an average of about once per year, I mostly listen to another station during these fund raisers. The radio shows during the fund drives, however, are usually especially good in between the pleas for money so I was tuning in every few minutes.
The part of the show I caught this morning was an interview by Terri Gross with a psychologist, Dr. Dan Gottleib, from Philadelphia. He was talking about his practice and his books. While he was very interesting, the most intriguing part of their discussion was the story of an automobile accident he in 1979. While driving on the Pennsylvania turnpike about an hour west of Philadelphia, a wheel came off a truck, also traveling on the turnpike, and landed on top of and crushing his car. His neck was broken and he was paralyzed from the chest down. He went on to become very successful as a radio show host, newspaper columnist, and psychology practioner. I looked up some reviews of his books later and I may read one of them, as the reviews are quite good.
At the end of the day, I was driving home on I 30 going west just outside of Dallas. I glanced in the rearview mirror to see a rooster tail shower of sparks probably 10 feet wide and much longer extending from a large truck just behind me. The truck had lost its front left wheel. Although the truck was probably going close to 60 miles per hour, it seemed to be mostly in control and slowing as it continued straight down the road.
This stretch of interstate has three concrete barricades probably 12-15 feet apart in the middle. I did not see the wheel leave the pavement but I did see it high in the air over all of the barricades and crash onto the roof of an oncoming full size pickup truck. There was too much traffic to stop or turn back. About and an hour later I came back the same way on my way to a baseball game. The pickup roof was crushed almost to the dash.
I do not know what happened to the driver or passengers in the pickup, but it made me think of how life can change so dramatically and forever in just an instant.
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