“I knew within that moment two things could happen. As I sat up from my spot on the couch, she immediately took my breath away. I wanted to remember it all.”
‘Mommy, I had an accident. I couldn’t make it to the toilet. I did it on the kitchen floor.’ I peeked over, half-asleep.’: Mom urges ‘give the blessing of grace and unconditional love’
‘Someone put in an offer on our home in the middle of this pandemic. Our mortgage couldn’t be put on hold. We scrambled to live in a 6-feet wide trailer.’: Mom recounts 2020 regrets, ‘Everything happens for a reason’
“I had just been laid off. Maybe I should have put up with the terrible job that I felt might have killed me, to take a temporary one that ended New Year’s Eve. Amidst all this I get an awful and mean message from someone with whom I thought I got along, and no reason behind it.”
‘She called me in hysterics. ‘Mom, we have to do something. We can’t let it suffer.’: After witnessing wounded deer, mom and daughter realize ‘how truly fragile and beautiful life is’
“There we were, crumpled on the side of the highway, weeping over a dying deer. She wanted so desperately to help ease the animal’s suffering as it struggled to breathe. ‘Oh, Mom,’ my daughter whispered. We prayed her suffering would not linger for long.”
‘I hopped in the driver’s seat instead of letting him drive. I gently pressed the gas pedal, no one in sight. Then everything went…silent.’: After car accident with son, mom says ‘don’t let the ‘wrappers’ in life get in the way’
“We jumped in the car to run some evening errands. ‘Stay there. We are sending help,’ she said urgently. The thing that defined our relationship was snack wrappers. It’s embarrassing to admit how much of our daily interaction revolved around me telling him to, ‘pick them up!’ It is always the unimportant decisions that change lives.”
‘I watched Grace’s head hit the front of the truck. Our entire bodies went under. ‘These tires are going to run us over. I’m going to lose my child.’: Woman describes trauma of car accident ‘I continue to play the ‘what if’ game with myself’
“I remember thinking, ‘This guy better stop,’ but telling Grace in a quick tone, ‘Come on. We need to hurry.’ From the sidewalk, I reached out both of my hands and yelled ‘Stop!’ I watched my own self and 3-year-old daughter get struck by a moving vehicle.”
‘Do not tell him to Go Big or Go Home!’ I whisper and instantly regret. The EMT rushed out onto the course. Skier 107 is my son. My 6-year-old son.’: Parents teach son the importance of perseverance
“‘Go Big or Go Home!’ his dad told him. Honey, this is supposed to be a fun thing,’ I told him as I brushed back his golden hair. ‘But Mommy, what if I lose?’ he cried. When we arrive at the top of the mountain, he panics. ‘I don’t want to do it, Mommy. I am scared.’ I hear the cries of the crowd, the unmistakable climax of shock, and then silence.”
‘If you’re there, I need you to wake up. Your boys need you. Tell God you’re not ready.’ His eyelids fluttered. I blinked back tears.’: Woman says her husband is ‘truly is a walking miracle’ after motorcycle accident
“He had blood-soaked gauze around his head. ‘Is that a bone sticking out of his arm?’ Sean had been in a motorcycle accident. I sat beside his bed listening to the ventilator push air through his body. I need you. Your boys need you. I know you’re in there, but you have to show these doctors that. I’m going to go home. When I get back in the morning, you need to wake up.'”
‘Things weren’t adding up. ‘Have a nice life,’ I told my boyfriend. An hour later, I saw ‘RIP’ posted all over my feed. My heart started beating.’: Teen mom loses boyfriend in tragic car crash during pregnancy, ‘My son kept me going’
“I was 19 and pregnant with his baby. An hour after our argument, I scrolled down and saw a picture of a crashed car with the words ‘RIP.’ It was HIM. All of a sudden, my phone started ringing. People were calling, asking, ‘Is is true? He’s dead?’ I ran to the trash can to vomit. It felt like a horrible dream. I was waiting to wake up. I was so scared to be a teen single mom.”
‘What if they can’t find me?’ I was pressed into a deep ditch, the toes of my boots barely touching the driver’s seat.’: Woman vows to ‘pay it forward’ after strangers’ acts of kindness during car accident
“‘Which road are you on?’ My voice broke. ‘I don’t know.’ Crying, I couldn’t remember. Then, I heard a voice from the outside. ‘Are you okay?’ I expected him to leave. I didn’t think he’d stick around. He leaned in. ‘Can you get out of the car?’ he asked. I shook my head, still crying. He hugged me tightly and I hugged him back, sobbing against his chest. I hadn’t asked for a hug. It never occured to me how much I needed one.”
‘I was abandoned on a doorstep at 1 years old, burned. ‘Wen, we’d like to adopt you.’ I was given a second chance to live.’: Burn survivor adopted from foster care, ‘I’m so lucky to be alive!’
“My biological parents had bills to pay. They gave me up, knowing they may never see me again. I didn’t know what was happening. Soon, I was taken away. I was halfway across the world on a plane ride that changed my life forever. I was given a second chance at life.”
