The Wreck

One wintry December evening in 1986 our family was on the way to choir practice at church. The church drive is located on the top of a hill. As we were slowing down to turn a car popped over the hill. Daddy slowed down some more but the car continued to travel directly toward us. Daddy drove into the ditch and the oncoming vehicle followed us into the ditch before slamming into the front left corner of the car. The car, a Volvo, was demolished however, a cop told us if the car would not have been a Volvo Daddy probably would have been killed. The way the car was made prevented the other vehicle from climbing into the drivers seat. My mother was not wearing a seat belt and her delicate jaw made rapid contact with the tape deck. Both items were broken and the jaw experienced more pain than the tape deck. I was not wearing a seat belt either and my hard head made direct contact with the head rest on the drivers seat which resulted in a concussion. My chiropractor tells me this is why my head is not on straight and I thanked him for giving me a good excuse. My sister, Juanita, was not hurt and disappeared without telling anyone where she was going. This frazzled the mother quite a bit and she spent a considerable amount of time looking under the car trying to find her before people came pouring out of the church and informed her that Juanita had gone into the church to get help. She had dashed into the church and shouted "We had a wreck." To which the director moaned and said "Oh great, silly children!" thinking some kids had smacked into each other.
I have no recollection of this incident except for a few minor things.
1. I can see to round headlights headed for us but I have no memory of impact.
2. I remember lying on a church bench and hearing Chris Good laughing at me for repeating myself. I also remember wondering how mamma was doing.
3. I remember one split second of the trip to our family Dr. Grandaddy drove us down to Brookneal. I can see Dr. Carwile's face with his normally grim expression.
4. I remember Daddy and Dave Gingerich took me to the emergency room and I remember one point while we were there but that is all.
These memories are of the very brief sort and in some ways I hope they never fully come back to me.
Have you ever been in an accident?
Oh, by the way, the guys that hit us, they were playing basketball in our barn within the next week. Right after the wreck they jumped out of the car and started throwing bottles into the woods. I do have a vague recollection of seeing them standing at the truck and hurling beer bottles into the woods. Sometimes it feels like a bad dream......