Life-Changing Day
It was a normal summer day. My dad got up and went to work as usual. Because it was summer, I was sleeping in. My sister came into my room and woke me up. Little did I know that what she was about to tell me would completely change my life.

My sister told me that my dad had been in a car accident. We didn’t know a lot of details, but I just knew that my dad wasn’t OK. My sister tried to be brave in front of me, but deep down I knew she was worried, too. Though I was only 10 years old at the time, I knew the situation wasn’t good.

When I arrived at the hospital it felt strange to realize I wasn’t just visiting a sick friend, but I was visiting a hurt family member—someone I loved and was close to. I didn’t realize that the worst part was yet to come—seeing my dad in person. I didn’t know what to expect, but I definitely wasn’t ready for what I saw when I entered the room.

As my mom and I walked down the hallway to my dad’s room, everything seemed out of place. Nothing seemed right to me. I tried to make sense out of being in the hospital to see my dad, who had been injured in a car accident.

As I walked into the room, the man in front of me was a stranger. I didn’t even recognize that it was my own father. He was lying on a stretcher, and when he looked up at me, I saw pain in his eyes. I walked up to him and thought to myself, Is this my dad? I just couldn’t believe that the hurt man in front of me could be my dad.

When my dad got to his room, he wanted to pray. I couldn’t believe how much faith my dad had—to pray to God after He had allowed such a painful accident to happen. By his actions, I knew my dad had a lot of faith. Since that moment, I’ve wanted to be just like my dad: faithful to God.

Later we learned the details of the accident. My dad had left for work just as he did every morning. It had been raining really hard that day, and the water had lifted my dad’s truck. He had hydroplaned on the water and couldn’t keep control of his vehicle. Nothing that happened that morning had been his fault—he was completely innocent. I realized that something like a car crash could happen to me or to someone in my family without warning.

Test of Faith
Some people told my mom that if my dad hadn’t had his seatbelt on, he wouldn’t have survived the accident. Other people said God put angels in the truck that morning. I believe that God was protecting my dad.

Now every morning that it rains and we’re out running errands in the car, I think about that awful morning and how sad I felt. Whenever we pass the spot where the crash happened, I hold my breath. I start thinking about all that happened on that summer morning three years ago.

I don’t know why God allowed my dad to go through such a tragedy. Maybe God was testing my faith and the faith of my whole family. Maybe God allowed it to show all of us that we take a lot of things for granted. I may never know why this awful thing happened, but I have decided to just be thankful to still have my dad. That morning I almost lost my dad. But I’m very blessed, and I know God is watching over my family and me.

That experience taught me that bad things could happen to people I love, so I shouldn’t take my family for granted. I just always expected my dad to be there, every day. When the crash happened, I realized that could change. I’ve learned to be thankful to still have my dad alive and in my life. I’ve learned to spend more time with my parents and my family, because they could slip away just as my dad almost did that summer morning. God taught me that every single second with my dad is a very precious moment!