10/21/11 @ 1121am

today marks the two year anniversary of Brittany's car accident. I will never ever forget that day... I remember the nitty gritty details... and I remember the overall intensity surrounding such an event. the thought that someone you love could be lost in a moment hit so deeply.

although my friendship today with Brittany is never where I imagined it to be... I feel forever tied to her and this major event that changed her life forever. I feel an odd closeness with people who want nothing to do with me today... I feel like its a day that only we, the ones who lived it, can understand...

the LLLOOONNNNGGG moments in the hospital waiting room to get some sort of clarity to a phone call that said "Brittany has been in a multi car accident, get to the hospital as quickly as possible". the treacherous moments learning of the few injuries, thank goodness, she had. the moment where we all knew she was going to make it... and although I felt for her pain and the strenuous road ahead... the joy I felt that she was not lost. she was not taken so young. the days in the hospital seemed like a lifetime... the gathering family together, making phone calls to insurance, cell phone companies, all the back and forth involving a car accident... staying close to each other, as we all knew we needed each other...

that day... more than any other day in my life... I had learned the importance of life. to such a large understanding... how fragile life is... how strong our bodies are... how much one person can endure... she had survived an accident she factually should not have survived... it was not her time to go... and seeing her in the hospital, I felt relief and a lot of sadness for her body and her road to recovery. 

seeing her car, to attempt to gather her personal belongings, was such a real visual of how strong her physical body is. and what a fighter she is... what an inspiration and hero she is to me. what a moment, one that is engraved in my head.

watching her struggles throughout the next year... another huge confirmation that the human body is strong beyond belief. how amazing it was to witness that recovery and healing. the physical and mental pain she shared with me. I am grateful for the moments I was able to share in. how I treasure those celebrations of life, that at those moments, I didn't realize that's what they were... and today, I see that... each car ride to physical therapy, each single step, each x-ray, each checkup... what celebrations of a life deserved...

I am so grateful for this experience. so grateful for the lessons I was able to learn. the true value of someone you love and how very quickly they can be snatched from you. grateful to the God that saved her, she was definently watched over oct 21, 2011. there was a higher power that intervened this day. and my belief in a higher power grew... my belief that "everything happens for a reason" was confirmed through all the healing. thank you to Brittany for sharing this time with me and allowing me to learn and grow in the ways I needed to. and also SO VERY GRATEFUL that she is alive and able to live her life. and thank you for the tender reminder to never take any moment for granted... live life to its fullest... stay true to yourself... and love, deeply love, those close to you... you never know what lies around the corner...