The force of the impact was incredible. Glass shattered around me, raining down everywhere. The sickening, crunching sound of metal was deafening and I felt myself spinning. I saw the taillights in front of me disappear and then the headlights of the cars that
were behind me were heading at me; and so it continued. I was
spinning forever, it seemed. I was saying a silent prayer.
I was wishing blessings on my family and friends because I
knew I was about to die. There was no pain. I was surprised.
That would come later; I was to learn.
It was amazing just how many thoughts went through my head
in that seemingly very small amount of time. the noise stopped and the spinning stopped. It was quiet; too quiet. My thoughts were thrust into darkness, and then they drifted to a simpler time, one filled with comforting memories of a lifetime of striving for the ultimate goal of Olympic Gold.
It's taken me a long time to write this. There was a time, not so long ago, when the words would spew from my mind and travel through my fingertips to quickly fill the void of an empty page. The accident changed all that. It not only changed what I did--it changed who I am.
Lately I've felt the old, familiar stirrings of my writer's mind--a welcome visit from a dear, old friend who had been away far too long. You see; I had to relearn to read and write to create this work. The words and feelings are different, not so carefree as before, yet the need is the same. The need is to capture my thoughts and feelings on an empty page and paint living, breathing images with the strokes of my keyboard. I yearn again to mesh those feelings with the perfect descriptions, so as to transport you, my reader into another place and time. My keyboard is your roadmap and my words are the tour that will guide you through an unforgettable journey. My life has been a tumultuous journey; one that has been filled with excitement, heartaches, excruciating pain, and finally; hope and joy. It is a journey that is still unraveling, slowly leading me to my destiny. I invite you to share in this journey and hope that by taking this trip with me, you'll be able to see how our challenges in life are often blessings in disguise...
