The Sickening Sound of Crashing Cars

It was a happy day. The whole family gathered for a fancy lunch to celebrate my father's 82nd birthday. Immediately following that, four of us headed for the shopping center to buy "off to college" supplies. My wife and I were innocently wandering the aisles when I was paged overhead. That is never good. It's not like we won free dorm room accessories or something. Here's what all the paging was about: The one day I choose to go cell-phone free, my son gets into a car wreck. Fortunately, he and his girlfriend are unhurt. He is angry because his car may be totaled.
There's comforting news. The other driver essentially admitted he was at fault. The policeman who worked the accident said it was pretty clear what happened. The other driver turned left into oncoming traffic on a five-lane highway. Sadly, my son was oncoming when it happened.
The experience was affirming in a way because people were so nice. Two people came to my son and offered business cards or other contact information, saying they witnessed the accident and that he did nothing wrong. Corporal Scott of the SPD was outgoingly friendly and helpful. When we called the insurance company, the lady from State Farm was friendly and efficient in starting the claims process. The people at AAA worked quickly to get a tow truck to us. The tow truck driver, when he arrived, said "Sir, I'll take care of this. You get out of the heat."
It was scorching out there on the pavement. While we were waiting for the tow truck to arrive, the manager of a nearby Krispy Kreme came to see us. He invited us into his store, gave us free drinks and a dozen donuts. Truly, it was inspiring to have complete strangers go out of their way to act with such courtesy. We must have looked pitiful or something. Oh, and when we got back to Bed Bath and Beyond, they had held our shopping cart for us. Now, that's optimistic customer service.
As for my son, he's still significantly angry and frustrated that his car is devastated even though he was doing everything right, minding his own business on his way to buy stuff for school. He wasn't speeding or using his cell phone or changing lanes. He was just moving straight ahead through a green light. This can be a lesson. Things can change in the blink of an eye.
Now, we get to go car shopping.

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