When I was 17, I would text and drive all the time. This was, of course, before it was illegal. I thought I would never get in an accident because I was the BEST driver.
I got a rude awakening when I rear ended a brand new Lexus. I was seriously sweating bullets. I had never even been pulled over and I was so scared. I followed the car to the side of the road, and we both got out of our car. I was in tears, “Im so, so, so very sorry. Ive never done this before, please tell me what you would like me to do.” The woman and I stared at the tiny scratch on her bumper, which I felt at the time was huge. My stomach was turning and my heart was racing.
She looked at me and said, “Its ok, dont worry about it. But one day, when this happens to you, do the same for someone else.” And that was it. Simple as that, she was letting me go.
I was jumping with joy!! “Thank you so much!! I will definitely do that.” I felt horrible that I rear ended her, but I couldn’t help feeling excited that she let me walk away from it.
About 5 years later, it was my turn. I was driving home, and a BMW slammed into the back of my car. We did the same exact thing- both pulled over, got out of our cars, and started at the damage. Then she said, “Is there anyway that we could work something out? I will pay you cash for whatever you need, but can you just not report it please? I’m an attorney and I can afford whatever you need to do to fix this”
When I bought my car, the back bumper already had some scratches on it. Initially, I was thinking I could definitely get my car into perfect condition by acting like it was all her fault, which she already thought. But then I remembered that day when I was 17 and the sweet woman that let me go. I smiled, looked at her and said, “Its ok, dont worry about it. But one day, when this happens to you, do the same for someone else.”
That made me feel better than I know I would have felt had I got my bumper fixed.
Liz Skajem 