“I wish I could have those 4 seconds back!” was repeated by my husband several times after my cycling accident.

In all reality, the accident likely happened within 1 or 2 seconds. Our bike tires collided and I went down hard on the concrete resulting in 3 pelvic fractures, a right elbow fracture, a whopper of a bruise on my right thigh, and loads of road rash.

We’ll never get those seconds back. We’ll never be able to push rewind. There are no do-overs.

Our only choice now is to move forward. And heal.

The accident happened because I said one thing, he heard another. No one person was completely at fault. It was a flash-before-your-eyes accident that happened in an instant.

Cyclists use hand signals and/or short phrases to alert other cyclists in the group who are either behind them or in front of them. We say things like “car back”, “car up”, “clear”, “slowing”, “stopping”, or we point down if there’s debris on the road so the rider behind us knows to swerve to avoid it, etc. Most of the time this works flawlessly.

We had just completed a strong ride. Feeling good because we battled some fierce wind which is always a victory in the cycling world. We were on the cool down portion of our ride and approached the street we normally turn right on to head back home. I said “right” but he heard “straight.” I assumed he heard correctly and as I turned my bike right, he kept his bike straight. In an instant my front tire collided into his back tire and I was immediately catapulted off my bike onto the pavement. I didn’t even feel my shoes unclip from the bike as I was thrown to the pavement like a rag doll.

Pain & Fear consumed me.

It took a second to realize what happened and another second to realize I couldn’t move. Fortunately and thankfully, my husband did not crash. He ran to help me. I was finally able to scoot up onto my bottom but the searing pain clearly indicated something was wrong. I’ll fast forward through the ambulance ride and ER visit because the point of this is all about the few seconds that preceded the crash.

Have you ever wished you could take back 4 seconds in your life? 1 or 2 seconds?

That’s about how long it can take to make or break something. Or someone.

The few seconds it takes to encourage your child but you don’t because you’re tired after a long day at work.

The few seconds it takes to speak words of appreciation to your spouse but you’re too distracted by endless scrolling.

The few seconds it takes to smile at a stranger passing you on the street but you choose to avoid eye contact instead.

The few seconds it takes to say something rotten to a friend because you’re the one having a bad day.

The few seconds it takes to say “I’m sorry” but you’re too wrapped up in your own bitterness and pride.

The few seconds it takes to send a text to your parent or sibling to say I love you but you’re “just so busy” and will get to it later. But never do.

The few seconds it takes to hug someone who has different views than you but you’re too worried about “how it might look.”

And the list goes on…. 

In all these situations one thing is certain. Within seconds, the damage is done. The pain lingers. Healing is necessary. Sure, some more damaging than others, but you get the point.

And sadly, sometimes we don’t even recognize we missed the opportunity that was right in front of us! Ugggh! That’s heartbreaking.

We all miss opportunities. I certainly do. This is not meant to make you feel guilty. I’m just inviting you to push pause for a few seconds in your day and think about how you’ll use that precious time. Precious time that keeps ticking away, 1 second at a time. Once it’s gone it’s gone. No do-overs.

What opportunities will you purposely seek today? Will you choose to make someone’s day a little brighter and a whole lot better? Will you put someone else’s needs above yours? How will you use your precious seconds today? Will you make time to choose encouragement and joy today?

I mean, we DO have 86,400 seconds every day… We have time.

With love & hugs,

Jen