It was a Saturday morning, and I was at home, finishing up some work while my wife and kids were on their way to Kamden's soccer game. I was looking forward to joining them later, but then my phone rang. It was my wife, and her voice was trembling as she told me that they had been in a car accident.

My heart dropped, and I felt a wave of panic wash over me. I asked her if everyone was okay, and she reassured me that they were all safe, but they had been in a severe accident. She told me that a Toyota Prius had t-boned their big passenger van at a four-way stop on the way to the soccer game, and that they were waiting for the police to arrive.

I quickly got dressed and rushed to the scene of the accident. As I arrived, I saw the extent of the damage. Our van was crushed on the passenger side, and the Prius was totaled. I was relieved to see that my family was okay, but the shock and fear were still visible on their faces.

As the police took statements and assessed the damage, my wife recounted the events leading up to the accident. The driver of the Prius had been texting while driving, causing her to run the stop sign and collide with our van.

I felt a wave of anger and frustration wash over me. How could someone be so reckless and careless, putting the lives of innocent people at risk just to send a text message? I realized that this was a reminder of how precious life is, and how important it is to always be aware of our surroundings.

I also realized that the accident was a wake-up call to the reality and danger of drift. Not in the sense of cars drifting on the pavement after an accident, but the tendency as humans to drift through life, aimless, letting the world take over. In this case, the lady driving the Prius became so distracted by her phone that she nearly caused fatal destruction to herself and others. What was she thinking?!

But the truth is, we all have moments where we drift through life, not fully present, and not fully aware of our surroundings. As parents, we can become so busy with our work, our phones, our worries, that we forget to prioritize the safety and well-being of ourselves and our families.

I appreciated the correlation between the Prius and the van, too. As a family, we do our best to live with purpose and putting our faith in God. That doesn't always mean that life will be roses and butterflies, sometimes we will get hurt - in this case, an accident. But our faith is our protection. The van was no where near as damaged as that little Prius, cruising through life with not a clue as to where.

Overall, the accident served as a stark reminder that we cannot take our lives for granted. We need to be intentional about our actions, our decisions, and our priorities. We need to be aware of the consequences of our actions and consider how they might impact others, especially our children. As a father, I realized that I needed to model better behavior for my children. I needed to show them how to be present and focused, how to prioritize what's most important, and how to live with intention. The accident was a wake-up call,  a reminder to not let ourselves drift through life, but to live with purpose and make the most of every moment that we have.

Looking back on that day, I am grateful that my family and the Prius driver were safe and unharmed, and I am grateful for the lessons that we learned from the accident. It was a scary experience, but it brought us closer together and helped us to prioritize what is truly important in life. We learned that life is fragile, and that we need to cherish every moment that we have with our loved ones

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Don't forget, as a family it is possible to live a life of purpose. My recommendation to any and all families is to make the time and investment in Legacy Mapping - a professionally guided process that Legacymakers provides. Learn how to enroll here.