On the road
I pass by an accident on the road. and I keep thinking it could have been me. it could have been me. if only I had left home 5 minutes earlier. if only I hadn’t gone back to double check I’d locked my door. if only a pedestrian walking so slow hadn’t stopped me earlier on the way. I pass by an accident on the road. and I watch the faces of those involved. totally detached from this world. as if the accident physically moves them to another universe. where nothing really matters. but the safety of their loved ones. I pass by an accident on the road. and I realize how tiny this world suddenly sounds. that meeting this guy was speeding to attend. that text this girl couldn’t wait to send. that toy this baby kept nagging to get hold of. none of it sounds urgent anymore. so many things happen at one given instant. and the next. none of it matters. none at all. I pass by an accident on the road. and I watch those policemen. and those ambulance cars. rushing to the scene. for God knows how many times this week. if not just this day. and I wonder. I wonder if it changes anything about the way they sleep at night. if it changes anything about the way they hug their children when they’re home. or the way they generally go about life. I pass by an accident on the road. and I take a turn. I physically leave the scene. but the scene never leaves my mind. everyone takes a turn after me. and everything suddenly resumes again. but someone’s life back there. will never be the same.
