Time to Change a Life

10 seconds. It seems unlikely that the time it takes to yell “olly olly oxen free” could change a life, but it can and did.

With golden blonde hair and a smile which lit up the room, 16-year-old Jackie was a very popular high school Junior. Her sweet caring temperament made her as beautiful inside as she was on the outside, earning her many friends.

Her popularity and many years of dance classes made her a natural for her high school’s pom pom team. Poms became the perfect blend of her favorite things….friends, fun and dancing.

In 2012, popularity took it’s form in constant social media communication. Instead of the party-line phone calls and passed notes of yesteryear, millennia teens kept up to date with neverending text messaging, the lifeline of teenage communication. Inattention to a text message could mean missing out on a juicy piece of gossip or a comment. An unanswered text could even be a social faux pas – an affrunt to the sender who could excommunicate you. As a popular teen, Jackie would never miss one in a constant stream of text messages.  Never.

After an exciting win at a poms tournament, Jackie was on top of the world. “Mom,” Jackie said exuberantly. “We won! Can you believe it. It was close, but we did it.”

“Woo, that’s great, honey,” her mother cheered. “Come to grandma’s and you can tell us all about it. We are here now.”

A few minutes later, Jackie’s father picked up his phone. “It’s Silver Cross Hospital,” he said flatly. “There has been an accident.”

Terrified, the family quickly reached the hospital to find out their beautiful Jackie was gone.

“She was hit on the driver’s side by the car in the intersection going southbound,” the sheriff’s police officer told the family. “We think she accidentally went through the light, which had just turned red. It’s a shame, just a few seconds later and the car would have missed her.”

When her family went in to see her, it looked as if she were just sleeping. Unbelievelbly, there was not even a scratch on her.

“We think she hit her head during the impact,” the nurse consoled. “She went instantly…she would not have felt anything.”

As she left, she handed Jackie’s father a bag with her things. He looked at her phone. It was completely intact and the screen had a half-finished text message.

“She was probably texting and didn’t see the light turn,” he said somberly. “If she had just waited.”

One decision in just a few seconds time would cut short her young life and change the lives of everyone she touched forever.