Friday, September 25, 2009

Obsession and random acts of kindness #Fridayflash


Browsing the Internet for reports of the accident became an obsession for Catherine. Since her granddaughter’s death, she was looking for someone to blame. The driver of the van that hit her son’s SUV had sped off, weaving through cars on the Interstate and successfully avoided detection.

A driver who had seen the accident had pursued the reckless vehicle in an attempt to get the tag number but her efforts were fruitless. This stranger had eventually given up and appeared at the trauma center of the emergency room of the hospital. There was comfort in knowing that someone had tried to catch the child’s killer and that this woman could not just go home without coming to share with the family. Witnessing the accident must have been a terrible experience that she needed to share.

Catherine saw multiple references to newspaper websites in the state and many of them had forums linked to each article. She was looking for anything that might yield some clue. None was to be found. It was surprising to see that so many comments followed each article. Many were simply expressing sympathy. Some were sharing stories of similar accidents that had taken place in the same area on the same Interstate. Others were describing the flowers they had placed at the scene after seeing the report on the news. These were all touching. Catherine knew she would never have gone on the Internet and posted a comment under an article describing a horrendous, fatal accident.

As she read each note, one stood out from all the rest.

“I was in the emergency room when the family of the child arrived. My heart was broken by their grief. I sat and cried while each person handled the news differently and one person tended to the father of the child who had been driving. His injuries were relatively minor but his horror and tears touched my soul as he called out his daughter’s name. And I watched a boy about 2 years old, with superficial cuts on his face and head. He laughed and played with the toys in the corner. I mourned for the dead child and for the one who had survived, equally, knowing that his life had been changed forever.”

Catherine stopped reading after that. The driver was never found, as Catherine knew he wouldn't be.

13 comments:

Jai Joshi said...

Way to depress me late at night, Susan! I'll probably have nightmares. Powerful writing.

Jai

Susan Cross said...

I was running late on this one and wrote it in a few minutes on my way out. Otherwise I would have missed a week. I do tend toward some dark subjects. Pleasant dreams. You weren't supposed to read it until the light of day.

Alan said...

Powerful - and dark which is my cup of tea anyway. Good job.

Tony Noland said...

Pretty dark, even for the middle of a sunny day.

Very tightly packed emotional content here. Good work.

Susan Cross said...

Thanks, Tony. I was in a dark mood last night when I wrote it. Today another sunny day here in FL. Maybe I should write next week's today.

J. M. Strother said...

Very sad story, Susan, packed full of emotion. A little hard to take, but very well done. There is a lot of dark in this world.
~jon

Marisa Birns said...

Haunting. One reads in the paper too many stories of this very thing. The father in your story, suffering from his own injuries, and calling out for his daughter made me teary.

Sad story, but written very well.

Paige Bruce said...

I don't think it's entirely dark. It seems like Catharine found something out of what the commenter said. I'm not saying that it turned positive, but the focus seems to go back towards the living, and once the dead are gone, those are who you need to focus on.

That said, very touching. Reminds me a little about when I lost my stepfather and the intense feelings that followed.

Susan Cross said...

Just the fact that someone would comment on a forum expressing sympathy gave it a sort of positive spin to me. Goes back to the kindness of strangers rule. Just when you think that you're all alone in the world you find out that someone was there with you even if you didn't know it.

Linda said...

Raw stuff. Important thing to write about; glad you're taking on that mantle. Peace, Linda

Susan Cross said...

Thank you, Linda. Tough subject.

mazzz_in_Leeds said...

Very good.
The last sentence in the penultimate paragraph was particularly powerful

Susan Cross said...

Thanks, and thanks for stopping by to read my story.