Long Day

Harborview Hospital/Trauma Center. Seattle.

Daughter #1 Was In a Car Wreck Yesterday

Avian, 21, my oldest, is fine. Mostly.

Shaken up, upset, and yes, in pain. But she's fine.

For 24 hours, I didn't know her status, other than she'd been in a wreck, and was in the regional Trauma Center. I talked -- briefly -- to her and the paramedic as they pulled up to Harborview.

The medic said she'd been wearing her seatbelt when her car was rear-ended on the freeway (I-90) at 25-30 mph. She wasn't knocked out. No apparently broken bones, no major bleeding.

This is my daughter who likes to knock players out on the soccer field. However she suffers from panic attacks in her personal life when life doesn't go as expected, which she's been working hard to get a handle on. Part of which is, she's committed to doing things herself, not calling on Dad and Mom to rescue her.

She said, very specifically, "Don't come to the hospital. I don't want you to see me when I'm this scared." And that it wasn't personal to me or her mom. She had her insurance card and her cell phone. After extracting a promise from her that she'd call me or or mom when she got out, the rig pulled in to the hospital and her cell cut off.

And the waiting started.

Six hours.

Twelve hours.

Twenty-four hours later.

The only good news was, she was at the TRAUMA CENTER, where presumably, if she was bleeding to death in her belly or head, they'd figure it out and save her. If she lost it, they'd medicate her. Harborview is a safe place, if you're seriously hurt. It's a pain-in-the-ass if you're not.

Her mom -- my ex -- didn't call me with any news (as she had promised to do no matter what time she heard from Avian) all night long.

There was only waiting, and then, waking up from sleep, worried. Nothing.

This morning I broke down and called daughter #3, Kyle, who had just heard news of Avian. "She's out of the hospital after she 'spent five hours strapped to a backboard' and they 'didn't even give [her] any pain medicine at all!'"

Which I interpret to mean as, there wasn't anything seriously wrong with her. Airbags and modern car construction. Good job.

Being a parent, teaching your children they can grow up and do the big things and then sitting back as they do... *shudders* ...not for wimps.

It's okay to be afraid. You gut it out, trusting you raised them right, remembering all that crap you used to get into your parents never knew about, and which somehow, you got out of. *waves to Mom*

I still haven't heard from Avian. No clue when her next call or txt will be. This one gets all the room to run she needs.