Collision a reminder about life's important things

It all started last week with a phone call from my husband, Kyle.

He didn’t have much time to talk.

Quickly, he explained he had been in a car accident, was about to be loaded into an ambulance, and needed me to pick up our 3-year-old daughter, Maria, from daycare.

He hung up. I shut down my computer, grabbed my purse and left work.

On my way to fetch Maria, I knew I would have to drive by the area of the accident. It’s the route to her daycare.

Kyle’s brand-new Jeep Patriot was still at the scene, with one front corner bashed in.

The ambulance he was riding in was already gone. Just how bad was he hurt, I wondered. Was he leaving out details so I wouldn’t worry?

I picked up Maria and drove to Samaritan Hospital’s emergency room.  

We arrived at the hospital and were allowed to see Kyle almost immediately. A doctor was asking him questions and starting to unstrap him from a backboard.

While his ankle was being X-rayed, Maria and I left for the wrecking yard, where his Jeep had been towed to.

I later learned from Kyle that he wasn’t able to put his car in gear after the accident. Someone helped him open his door.

Even in the dark of the wrecking yard, I noticed a dark puddle near the car, apparently fluids leaking from the vehicle. It didn’t look like the Jeep was coming home anytime soon, which still remains to be seen.

A tow truck driver grabbed clean garbage sacks. He helped me unload personal items from the Jeep, patiently waiting while I looked through every nook and cranny for Kyle’s tools, CDs and paperwork.

With that job done, Maria and I left for the hospital to pick up Kyle.

We eventually made it home. The days that followed reminded me how much I love my husband and made me cherish our marriage even more.

I’m thankful our daughter wasn’t in the vehicle during the accident and Kyle wasn’t hurt worse. I’m also grateful I have the best husband in the world, which makes wrecking a brand-new car incredibly minor.

At this point, he’s on crutches and back to work.

We are a funny-looking pair right now, with him using crutches, and me with a huge tummy, almost eight months pregnant.

We both struggle to pick up tiny objects from the floor, but that’s OK. Our little girl helps us out, with a smile.

Lynne Lynch is the Columbia Basin Herald business and agriculture reporter. Her coworkers were relieved Kyle wasn’t seriously injured.