I never imagined this day would come.. I knew it would come some day. People say it's inevitable, something that really just happens when you're a driver. But I don't know... I didn't expect it to be today. Of all days, today.
Today was one of the most unproductive and tiring days for me, recently. It was literally like the universe was conspiring against me....
Despite feeling unwell, I went to school early today. But before I left the house, a little unexpected visitor (girls will understand this) decided to drop by. It was already quite late and I remembered that I forgot to do an assignment for one of my classes! This made me extra extra late already. And it was crochet Thursday so I really didn't want to be late but all odds seemed to be going against me. :(
When I got to school, one of my classmates informed me our teacher for the next period was absent. And my class after that is still at 11! I could've gotten the rest I felt my flu needed badly or I could've done some other work like drop the permission letter to the school I need to observe, but I was already in school so I had no choice.
Because of this, my observation was postponed till after my classes, which was by around 2:40. I went with a friend and we literally had no idea where we were going or where the school was located. (Good thing I called Chel and she gave me an idea where it was). It was already such a hassle to look for the school and walk in the stormy weather, but nooo. Something had to go wrong again to make everything worse. After driving 'till the ends of the earth (a.k.a. deeeeeeeep into J.P. Rizal) we finally found the school. And guess what. They were closed. All the teachers and principals were not around. It was extremely frustrating cause I thought I would finally get my work done.
As if that weren't enough. My friend and I drove ALL THE WAY BACK TO TAFT (or shall I say the valley of death) DURING RUSH HOUR. I needed to attend a seminar as it was a requirement for one of my subjects. We were already late and the traffic was still horrible so you could imagine how stressed out we were by now. I asked my friend to give our other friend in DLSU a call to ask whether the seminar had started yet.. and guess what she says. IT GOT CANCELLED.
BUT WAIT. THERE'S MORE.
So I drive back home, EXTREMELY stressed out by all the failure I've experienced throughout the day. I hated Taft during night time. Everyone wants to get home and everyone gets ten times more agressive on the road because of that. All of us have had stressful days and just want to escape yet another stress in life, which is the famous traffic of Taft. My back was aching, I couldn't feel my legs, my head was throbbing because of my flu and I just wanted to go home.....
Before I know it, I hear a loud thud come from behind me. I was so surprised it didn't register that it was my car that made that sound. I was so scared, that I froze and I didn't move the car for a while. When I snapped out of it, I pressed the hazard button and waited in the side. The guy in the car that I hit (or hit me) rolled down his window and told me that I had hit him while he was turning. He said "pinilit mo kahit 'di naman pwede". I was so scared because I really didn't know if it was my fault or not. He was so intimidating and he seemed pretty pissed-off. The traffic enforcer just told me to turn in a certain spot so I listened to his instructions and turned.
Anyway, he got off his car to take a look at the damage that was made. He went over to me and we looked at my car together as well. My knees were shaking and my eyes were welling up. I really didn't know what to do or say. I had never been put in this situation before... and I really wasn't sure if it was my fault or his. Even if the front of his car was the one that hit the back of mine, it's hard to tell because it's all about our speed and the angle of the turn. I was crying already and I could tell he also didn't seem to know what to do. I felt like he was waiting ffor me to defend myself but I didn't know why I just couldn't do it. I didn't want to defend myself if I was the one who was wrong. He noticed me crying so he told m e "Sit down inside your car, you might get sick from the rain."
I didn't know why he was being so nice to me.. I was still so confused and shocked and really really scared about what would happen so I remained still. He got out his phone and asked for my cellphone number. I almost forgot what it was because I was just too panicked to remember. I just kept thinking about how I would tell my dad or have the courage to face him when I get home.... He said we'll resolve the issue on the phone. (probably because it was raining so hard and we were on hazard in the middle of a very busy road). He asked me if I was a student, and he told me he was a doctor and that his name was Willie. I felt like he was letting me off the hook, but I didn't want to make any assumptions. I thanked him before he left, and he told me not to worry too much about it.
I was crying all the way going home.. I didn't know how to face my dad about this.. This was my first accident and it was such a stupid mistake.. I was praying to God about it and asking him to help me.. I was just so helpless and alone.
Despite all of that, the song 'Hurricane' by Switchfoot had been stuck in my head throughout the day. Especially the lines
"Hello, hurricane, you're not enough. Hello hurricane, you can't silence my love."
I couldn't help but think..
Was this my hurricane? Is my love being silenced?
I won't let this day stop me from loving my God.
When I got home, I checked my phone, and there was a missed call from the guy I bumped into. I didn't know if I should have called him back because I was really unsure of what I was doing or what I was going to say. All I was sure of was that I had to have courage to take responsibility of what I did.
To my surprise, he didn't say anything about the car at all. He asked me how I was and random questions like where I was studying or what my nationality was. It was indeed a blessing. I was just so speechless I didn't have the chance to develop the conversation.
After the call, I texted him:
"Thank you, Mr. Willie. God has blessed me in so many ways this week, including through you. I really appreciate the way you were not aggravated by the situation despite all the hassle on both our parts. I was so scared because I didn't really know what to do. This is my first accident so it's really new for me to be put in this situation. Nevertheless, I want to thank you for reminding me to be extra careful from now on. Thanks for being a blessing to end my week. God bless you and your work. We'll settle this soon."
His reply to my message was:
"It's ok, nothing much to worry about, I understand you and I see in your reaction that your innocent in such a situation, have a great weekend. God bless you and always stay happy. Thanks."
I was really surprised because of his relaxed attitude towards this matter. Was he letting me off the hook?
I really don't know what God is trying to tell me. If this was my test of faith, did I pass?
