Tags

,

I’ve taken on a new job that has me driving over hell and half of Louisiana on a regular basis. On a recent trip back from a loop that included Lafayette and Baton Rouge, I merged onto I-10 behind a truck carrying an unsecured load of debris.

I could only watch in horror as an interior house door flew off the back of his trailer and sailed through the air toward me. Time seemed to slow as I looked into my side mirrors and saw I had no where to go and then looked back in time to glimpse the sky through the hole in the door where the door knob used to be. I remembered thinking it was good they had taken that off just as it struck my front windshield and then broke into pieces as it damaged the roof and side of my car.

After I had chased down down the driver and waited while the Louisiana State Trooper wrote him a ticket, the reaction set in and I fought the nausea of the adrenilin leaving my system.

As my heartbeat slowed and I calmed, I thought about all the things I have to be thankful for this year.

Not only did I escape what could have been a horrible accident with only body damage to my car, I have found rewarding part-time work that has brought me steady income. My second novel was published by Bella Books and I have just signed a contract for the third. In addition to having a family that loves and supports me, I have a community that has recognized my advocacy as worthy of receiving the 2012 Equality Award from HRC Louisiana.

I am going to be at my parents for the celebration of Thanksgiving this year. Soon I will be sitting at a table loaded with food and surrounded by family and friends. I am so lucky to be alive, healthy and happy and to have been given this opportunity to let everyone know how much they mean to me.

Thank you, too, for being with me on the journey!