I am fairly certain that in my previous life I was a bouncy ball. I reached this conclusion by thinking of the numerous occasions when something dangerous or horrible happened, but I got away unscathed. Like one time when I was 5 years old and going to my grandparents' house in the countryside with my parents.
   It was a warm spring afternoon and the rebirth of nature and all that was giving me incredible energy. I was happily hopping around in the backseat of the car, with no seatbelt to speak of and chattering like a monkey. Every so often, my mom, who was behind the wheel, told me to stay still for I was a distraction when her focus needed to be on the road. And a horrible road it was too, full of potholes and curves. At one point, we ended up behind a large truck, which couldn't move very fast, due to its weight. I thought that was perfectly fine. After all, we were in no particular hurry to get to my grandparents' house and the journey was pleasant as well. But my parents found the vehicle equivalent of a snail in front of them annoying and frustrating. They later told me that they could feel their hair become grey and fall and their skin wrinkle. What made the situation worse was that the road was so sinuous that no one dared overtake another car. But then it straightened, so my mom gathered her courage and started the maneuver.
    After checking that all was clear from the other direction, she revved the engine and it responded gladly, like a sports player on the field after a long break. Before I could figure out what was going on, we had already left the truck behind. My mom was obviously relieved and my dad was impressed by her skills and complimented her. Then, the party crasher appeared: a left turn, not far ahead. There was no time to slow down enough, so we just continued moving at the same speed, thinking it would be alright. But, the centrifugal force was in a foul mood and dragged us off course. I  heard the tires screech eerily as the car skidded hopelessly. Because of the great speed, it then rolled over many times, only to stop in a ditch. That was when I first used my bouncy ball powers in the current life. My memories right after this event were kind of foggy, so I know what happened through my parents' eyes. My mom admitted that my frightened wails were what brought her out of the scared-still state she had been in. She managed to reach me and we all got out. Miraculously, the doors hadn't been stuck shut. As I looked back at the vehicle I loved, I could hardly recognize it. It looked like a crumpled sheet of paper, only more dangerous because of the shattered glass and metal pieces sticking out of it. Someone had called 911, but the sirens of the ambulance increased my confusion and panic. I got a cervical collar, which was uncomfortable, to say the least.
   At the hospital, the doctor ran a couple of tests to make sure we didn't have any internal damage. It turned out that the only injuries either of us got were a burn and a broken nose. Ironically, they were both caused by the airbags. We somehow hitched a ride home and put this whole incident behind us.
   As confident as the first statement made me seem, I'm not sure what the moral of this story is, if there is one. In the case that you are misogynistic, it's "Women are bad drivers"; if you want to protect your loved ones, you can say it's "Always buckle your seatbelt". But I think it's about how small things, which inspire us, can end up saving lives.

Last edited by Cristina.without.h (2019-06-04 20:05:34)