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When Time and Chance Happen to You
by John Miller
It was a warm, summer morning in New Bedford,
Ohio. Soft breezes gently swayed the leaves on the maple tree in the front yard of
our home. It was July 17, 1986. I had the day off work. It was promising to be an
enjoyable one with my family.
The children were up out of bed, and Jonathan, our 1-year-old, was bouncing on my
knee.
My wife enjoyed one of those peak moments of life that morning: Jonathan said "Mama"
for the first time.
Later that same morning Daniel and Mary Ann, our two older children, watched as I
adjusted the brakes on our Pontiac. In spite of busy fingers, dirty faces and countless
questions, I completed the job in record time.
Then the children stepped back so I could test the brakes. I got in the car, shifted
to reverse and slowly began to back up when I felt an abrupt and unexpected bump.
The children screamed.
What toy had I run over? I wondered.
So I continued to back up, expecting to see a smashed little red wagon. Instead I saw, there in the driveway, the lifeless body of Jonathan.
I jumped out of the car, and as I ran to my youngest son many questions raced through
my mind. How could this have happened? How did he get under the car without my seeing
him? I thought Jonathan was still in the house! How would I tell my wife? How could
I comfort the children when I had just killed their brother?
My wife came running as the children looked on stunned. We stood there, numb in shock
and grief, as we realized Jonathan was dead. What could we do? Where could we go
for help?
Seek God, I thought. But then I wondered, Will God support me when I have just killed
my son?
We called paramedics and accompanied our children into the house. A day that had
begun so pleasantly had become a nightmare.
Tragedy Becomes Real
We live in a world of tragedies. We read of them in the newspaper and see them
on television. We think they happen to other people but not to us. I know now, as
the police reminded me that awful day, that these things can happen to anyone. The
grim reality is that, even as you are reading this article, someone somewhere is
experiencing a tragedy similar to ours.
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