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| All side airbags deployed, which explained the ringing in Steve's ears |
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| Here's the truck that hit Steve That driver was okay as well. |
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| Bunch of MPs standing around with Steve looking like they're important. See that crosswalk? That's where the accident happened. |
More than anything I was dumbfounded. I found Steve and gave him a hug then took some pictures. Steve said he didn't even see the guy coming. And even after he was hit, he was a bit disoriented and drove about 100 meters down the road before stopping. All the airbags on that side of the car deployed, which smacked Steve in the head. He thinks the noise and the impact of the bags are why his ear was ringing so much.
After a few minutes of standing around with Steve we took the kids home to feed them breakfast. I then called my parents to just talk it out, especially since Dad had something similar happen to him a few years back.
It was a good 2 hours of dealing with Korean and Military MPs and their paperwork before he came home. He actually drove the van home, which was amazing. Obviously we aren't taking it anywhere else! But then he had to turn right back around and go to work, so I didn't even to get to talk to him. I think I probably could have used just a few minutes alone to chat with him to settle myself down. But work doesn't stop here and he had a meeting to get to.
A little bit later I got a phone call from Ellie wondering if Steve was okay. And that's when I remembered that our kids' bus drove right past this scene on their way to school today! They had to look over and see the flashing lights and their dad standing next to a rather beat-up car. I reassured her and then not long after I got a call from Ryan's teacher. Ryan had told her that his dad had been sent away in an ambulance and he was so incredibly upset. Oh, it brought tears to my eyes to picture my sweet boy going through his morning thinking his dad was seriously injured! After calming him down I emailed the other two teachers to explain things for Katie and Sarah.
Here is why it has weighed heavy on my mind:
- Steve could have been really, really hurt this morning. That makes me sad and a bit frightened. I'm rather fond of Steve and I don't like to even go there, but this morning I felt it. We all know very well how dangerous it is to drive in Korea and are extremely vigilant. But even so, Steve was still hit. And this could have ended a lot worse. So many scenarios ran through my mind. What if the kids were in the car? What if the guy was going just a little bit faster? What if... what if...?
- We are now without any mode of transportation whatsoever. Steve's motorcyle died last week and I've been driving him to work each day. Now we are truly without a vehicle. And with the rules on post about how many cars you're allowed to drive, we technically don't have permission to buy a new one yet.
- We have a pretty heavy deductible on that car. We're still waiting to see what the insurance decides to do with the van, but this van is supposed to last us!!
- I had plans and things to do today that were squelched and required phone calls and emails and just an overall disruption of my life. I'm supposed to go to Seoul tomorrow and now I have to take the bus with two kids and it's just a huge inconvenience.
I don't know if those were all different points, but regardless, my emotions were raw all day and I don't like feeling so down and discouraged. I love Steve. I am incredibly grateful that he had angels watching over him this morning that kept him safe from harm. This is certainly not something I wanted to have to deal with ever... let alone in Korea... but here we are and I know we'll be blessed one way or another.
Steve is feeling sore tonight and I have a feeling it'll be a lot worse tomorrow. He will be checked out by a doctor tomorrow to be sure there's no significant damage, too.
