I was in the prime of my life, age 19 at the time. I had a job, a great family, and a girlfriend that was the total package. She had brains, beauty, and a body that would put Megan Fox to shame! My little sister, Caren, looked up to me as if I was heaven-sent. Not to mention my baby, a 1960s RS-SS Camaro that had people of all ages drooling with every rev of my engine. Nothing could go wrong in my life. I was invincible like Clark Kent in Superman, Tim Tebow, or maybe even Chuck Norris. But like the saying goes, ‘all good things will eventually come to an end’. Well my “eventually” came far too soon.

I remember that day as if it were tattooed on the back of my hand. The day I uncontrollably lost everything I ever held dear to me. I lost the ability to hug my momma, to keep Caren safe, and to do minor things that people take granted for each day. Although I blacked out, I can still vividly envision the horrid aftermath.

To the right I saw where two vehicles had collided into a mangled mess. Inside the blue Chevy I could see a young female slumped over her steering wheel. Her chest was slowly but surely moving up and down that indicated to me that she was still alive. I called for her but she didn’t budge. She never eve raised her head. I made my way to check on her but was bombarded by emergency vehicles rushing to the scene. The red a blues filled the night sky as they danced along the nearby lake, reflecting off whatever they chose. The paramedics pulled the women they were calling “Amber” out of her truck and straight onto a stretcher. In a blink of an eye, she was gone. All of a sudden it dawned on me; there was not one but two cars involved in this tragic scene. I turned to make my way to the other car only to be stopped dead in my tracks. It was at that moment that it finally hit me. The other car was mind. My beautiful jet black Camaro was torn to shreds and laying in multiple broken fragments on the cold pavement. The thoughts of “How did this happen?”, “What do I do?”, “How am I still alive?” flooded my mind. I must have been ejected only to land inside the lines of safety and to wake up just in time to see the events unfold. But I thought for sure someone would come to my aid by now. Yes, I’m up and moving and Amber isn’t, but Amber has already been whisked off to the hospital. I saw my reflection on a shattered piece of a mirror. There was blood dripping off my forehead, I see my shirt is torn, I can feel sharp pains in my abdomen undoubtedly caused by severe bruising. Can they not tell I was involved in that same wreck? Then the strangest thing happened, the Jaws of Life started prying open what’s left of my car. “Am I dreaming?” I started screaming. “What’s going on?” Everyone’s attention was still tuned into the guy that looked just like me being placed in the ambulance. “It’s okay, Jason. You’re in good hands” says an officer as he leans into check on me. My knees buckle then hit the ground. I put my head in my hands as I finally come to terms with what has happened. My realization being that I must be on the outside looking in.

After picking my jaw up off the ground, I realized what truly was going on. I’m a ghost. I’ll never physically get to touch anything again. Maybe this was all a dream. “Please wake up!” I screamed. But I was standing there in silence, all alone. After eventually getting back to my feet, I ran. I ran as fast as I could to the last place I felt safe: home. There was a police car in the driveway where my Camaro usually was. The sirens were off and there were no flashing lights, the officer was trying to be as respectful as possible. I looked through the glass door that opened into our foyer and saw my mother break down. She was keeling on the ground in her own puddle of tears.

I decided to hitch a ride with my mom to the hospital. Caren was asleep next to me. I looked at her angelic face; there were no signs of tears, or discomfort. I guess my mom didn’t want to break her heart by telling her what was going on. I wish I could hug her one last time. My mom left Caren in the waiting room with one of her close friends, and darted to my room. As tears were streaming her face, she knelt beside my body. I didn’t want to look at myself. My whole face was black and blue, my eyes were shut, and my body was in a paraplegic state. My attention was directed to the beeping machines and the wires flooding my arms. A sincere looking nurse came and held my mom’s hand as they talked to her about the machines. They told her I was on life support; the machines were the only thing keeping me alive. My body was the only thing that was left. My mind and spirit had already left. My mom knew I wasn’t going to make it, and they left the decision up to her on when to turn the machines off. She nodded and said, “All good things have to come to an end. Let him go.” The nurse walked to the machines and turned them off. The life was literally sucked out of my body. She then folded my white sheet over my face and politely left the room. I felt a bottomless feeling when Dr. Scott announced that I had fully passed.

I hope they know I’m safe and that nothing can hurt me anymore. I pray that Caren remembers me and knows that I will always be her “big bubba”. I hope that my mom will continue to keep her faith and believe that she has a permanent protector. For now on, I’ll continue to roam these old stopping grounds. I’ll get to see Caren grow up, which makes me excited. It’s almost like I’m still there. I get an, “I love you, Jason” from my mom every day. Even though she can’t hear me, I love you too mom. I’ll see you two soon.