UNITED STATES—I don’t know how to describe the weekend, because it was one for the books people. There are pros and cons to having a large family. You tend to worry about everyone at some point in the day or the week. This weekend I got a phone call in the wee hours of the morning that made my heart sink immediately. My mother NEVER calls me super early in the morning, unless it’s an emergency, so I felt in my bones as soon as I looked at my cellphone after getting up shortly after 6:45 a.m. something was wrong.
I hate to say it, but I just had a feeling in my gut something bad transpired. I immediately go into panic mode and call my mother right back because I missed the call by mere seconds. She tells me my youngest brother was in the ER, he was hit by a car, and the panic sets in. The biggest concern was not knowing at all what his condition was. Was he conscious? How badly hurt was he? What transpired? Who else was involved? The list of things goes on and on and on.
My mother alerts me she was on her way to the hospital, and had to leave work. I then get on the phone to call my brother’s cell to try to get an answer, and I don’t hear from him. Not a good sign for me. So I call my sister-in-law, and she gave me some details, but not a lot. So now, I’m like I have to call my father and give him the news and it was a call I didn’t want to make because my father immediately goes to worst case scenario. I explain what has unfolded and he notes he was on his way to the hospital.
While all this is happening, I start dialing up the hospital where I was told he was transported to to find out what was going on. I was able to speak with someone who connected me to someone, who connected me to someone who informed me of the situation. He was indeed in the ER and there were concerns about internal bleeding, broken ribs and trauma to the brain.
The woman I spoke to did immediately inform me he was alert, but the doctors where running tests. The fact that I heard he was alert, did calm me slightly because if he had not been alert at all, I would have been more panicked than I can place into words. With that said, I’m on my way to the hospital. I hate hospitals as it’s a sign of people being sick, ill or needing help.
I get there and meet up with family who alert me where my brother was. I see him and wow, he didn’t look good. Face was pretty bruised, scarps on his shoulder and his body, not standing up straight and pain on the sides of his body, you could tell he was hurting. However, the biggest relief was knowing he was alive. I swear when my mother called I immediately thought the worst case scenario which would have devastated me to pieces.
Getting that phone call alerting that a loved one has passed away is not a great feeling. I have received those calls in the wee hours of the morning and they can devastate a person and upend your life in a way that you never imagine. Do we know much about the vehicle involved in the incident? Nope, it is so sad to know hit-and-runs happen more often than not and the person responsible never faces the consequences, which is a terrible feeling. However, as upset as I was about the situation, I was just happy my brother was alive.
We used to have the greatest relationship as kids, but him getting older, he has become more of a wild card where his toxic energy is just too hard to deal with. I have my own issues I’m dealing with; I don’t want to deal with someone else’s drama if I don’t have to. However, that dreaded phone call this weekend, was a wakeup call for me to attempt to repair my relationship with my younger brother to the best that I possibly can. The thought of losing him and being on bad terms would devastate me to the core, and I think that is what transpires in life.
Things happen for a reason, I’m not sure exactly why what happened actually happened, I just know it was an opportunity to work on my relationship with my brother, because at the end of the day he is blood and I don’t have any other younger brothers, he’s the only one.
