UNFINISHED BUSINESS

Did you ever have someone pass through your life briefly that made an huge impression. Some one you feel a need to somehow make your meeting right ?? To correct a wrong?? Someone you owe?? I have someone like that in my life that I do think of occasionally and wish I had a “do over.”

A friend of mine just recently had an auto accident. She was so upset because it was her fault. Her account of her accident and her expressions of guilt took me right back to my unfinished business like it was yesterday.

I was in my late thirties and was new to the job of collecting for the power company. I've all ready said how I disliked the job for it was a day spent listening to hard luck stories and having little recourse but to leave people in the dark with no power. I really hated the job. I was just too soft hearted.

One day I was thinking about the last person I had left without power but was also thinking about a juicy hamburger. I was really close to drooling at the prospect. All I had to do was make a left hand turn off a 5 lane highway and the burger was mine.

The through traffic light was green but the turn arrow for the left hand lane was off which meant proceed left with caution. Facing me was a large bread truck in the opposite left hand turn lane. Barely slowing down, l gave the opposite 2 lanes a quick look and the road appeared clear for at least a block so I accelerated to make my turn.

Well almost make my turn. Concealed by the truck was an older car traveling towards me that had innocently pulled into my path. We struck hard, sending my head into the windshield, cracking the glass. This was before required seat belt days and no air bags.

I was a bit goofy for a while due to the impact. A clean cut looking young man tapped on my window and wanted to know if I were all right. I had blood running down my face from a small scalp wound and a heck of a headache, but was otherwise OK.

Turned out he was the driver of the other car. Physically, he was just shaken. I was sick about the accident but grateful neither of us were seriously hurt. I was later scolded by my boss for admitting guilt since I contracted my car to the company and they handled the insurance. However, I couldn't quit apologizing. I knew I had been stupid and wrong.

I had smashed in his fender, crumpled the hood and water was leaking all over the road. We had collided hard enough to rupture the radiator. Several people helped him push his car off to the side, then they came back to try to move mine.

My fender was bent against the tires and it was hard to push. The young man grabbed the fender in his bare hands and pulled it away from the tire enough that we could move it also. I owned one of the first of what I call “beer can cars.” I once put a dent in my door just using my hip to close it.

As we waited for the police, the young man noticed my tire where the fender had mashed it was flat and he offered to fix it for me. He then proceeded to change my tire while we waited. While he worked on the tire, he told me his story. That was when I really felt even worse about what I had done.

He was from out of state, unemployed and had borrowed his buddies car to go job hunting. It was a vintage, run down car but he was grateful for the ride and hopeful that today was the day he would find a job.

He was confident enough he would find work that he had just put his last dollars into a new set of retread tires for his buddy's car. He had meant it as a “thank you” for all his buddy's help. He just knew he would find work that day and that things would turn around for him. That was till he met me.

When the police finished with us and tow trucks called, I went to call my boss to break the news. He told me that I had to take my car to a body shop and get a rental.

I still had half a day to work yet since I had stopped bleeding and my headache had been dulled with aspirin. While I was in the phone booth, I saw the young man walk off with head down and shoulders slumped. He was clearly beaten.

My boss connected me to the insurance department and by the time they were finished with me, the young man was gone. When I finally got the rental, I drove up and down the busy highway looking for him but there was no trace.

I am pretty sure his friends car was totaled but possibly due to the age and condition, they never filed against my companies insurance. I checked almost every day. They had every right as I had correctly been charged with the accident. I really wanted them to be compensated.

That fine young man is not on my mind constantly but when something happens like it did recently to my friend, it all comes back. He did not deserve what he got that day. That is one day I would really love a “do over.” Stopping before the turn and waiting less than a few seconds to get a good look would have done the trick.

Sadly,events that can affect our lives can often be measured in seconds. I can only hope our meeting was the very last of his bad luck EVER and that he went on to health and prosperity with Bill Gates type proportion.

He is my unfinished business. Do you have any?