How has the world changed for you?

[HeffsRah]

As we approach 9/11 again, I'm reminded of the fact that there have been many events in my life that have changed the world for me.

As a child, I was innocent, outgoing, adventurous, and dangerous (or maybe I just think dangerous because I'm older now. I didn't think I was dangerous when I was a kid). I took risks around each and every turn and didn't think about whether or not it would hurt or help me - I just did what I wanted to do.

With maturity came responsibility and with responsibility came the knowledge of what is "irresponsibile" and alot of my childhood attitude went out the window.

Today, I view myself as cautious-adventurous. I take risks but only after I've thought about the outcomes. I jump after I think about where I hope to land. I'm not as outgoing as I once was because I don't have the same kind of trust for all people as I used to when I was more innocent. I think alot of this came with fear.

9/11 really instilled more fear inside of me. I once believed that the United States was a place of unbreakable power and safety. I never thought that our home territory could be altered or compromised. Naivety? Maybe. Maybe under-exposure to the outside world. In any event, it opened my eyes up to the rest of the world and the fact that although I love my country - alot of others do not.

As I thought today about how my life experiences and the events I have lived through have shaped me into the person that I am today, I thought about how each person lives through different experiences and events and is equally affected or influenced by it in some way.

For many of you, it might be 9/11 as well -- I'm just interested to hear what other people think about this.

What has changed the world/your world the most for you?

[Amanda]

Sarah, of course 9/11 changed the world for me too. There are a lot of things in the world I've witnessed through the years and all have had some sort of impact on the way I view things. There too many things to mention... wars, assasinations/deaths, natural disasters, along with a lot of good in the world too.

[spotty4]

Wow, deep question! You go, Sarah!!

I know children will change the world for me, but that's still yet to come.

Fiance has definitely changed many things for me ... for the better, of course. Never before have I lived so much for someone other than myself, while still being myself.

But I would say the most recent event that has changed my world is a friend of mine named Brenda. I met Brenda when I moved to CA 4+ years ago. She and I were cycling buddies who would often ride together in a small group of other cycling friends. In late April 2007 she took a nasty fall. She was life flighted to San Jose where she stayed until July, of which 7 of those weeks were spent in a coma.

I visited her in the hospital 5 days after the fall. A tube was poking out of her skull to relieve pressure on the brain. Her entire body was bloated beyond recognition. Several ribs were broken. Her jaw was broken in 4 places. Her front teeth, top and bottom, were completely missing. Her swollen skin was covered in road rash. The day I visited her was her 48th birthday. The irony and shock was unbearable b/c she couldn't have been any further from life. Death literally was one breath away.

Myself and several of her other cycling friend visited her religiously. 17 months have passed since her fall. Her injuries are severe, the worst of which is the trauma her brain suffered. Underneath it all, Brenda is still w/ us. But on the surface, we've had the privilege of getting to know a new friend. She will never ride a bike again. She will never drive again. She will never be able to go back to her job. But we count our lucky stars every time we see her that we even get that chance. Brenda is talking. Brenda is smiling. Brenda is walking. Bit by bit she is regaining some of life's simple pleasures and freedoms and it is so warming and rewarding to see her make such gains and know that we have helped along the way.

Brenda truly is a miracle. Her odds were more than astounding. I marvel every time I see her up and about. She taught me that life can, and will, change in an INSTANT.

[Amanda]

Wow- that is life changing.
I want to add to my very short reply, that things changed for me on Oct 6, 1992. I was in a terrible car accident (it was almost a head on crash). I broke many bones on the right side of my body- wrist, kneecap, and my tib/fib in my lower leg. They were going to amputate my leg and I was in the hospital for 3 weeks. One of those weeks was in a rehab hospital trying to teach me to walk again. They put me through 2 surgeries and tried to put my leg together the best they could I kept the cast on for 11 months. I used a walker or a cane for a year afterwards. After it all I could walk again. I was told that if I didn't have my seatbelt on I would have been brain damaged or killed.
It really makes you take a step back and appreciate life!
You can't tell I was in an accident this many years later, but now my right lower leg bones are fused together so I sort of have 1 bone instead of 2.

[Hokuspocus]

Speaking of things changing in an instant dh and I were in a motorcycle accident 3 years ago.I was mostly fine which has been really guilt racking since dh hasn't been. They wanted to cut off dh's leg too he broke it in 2 places and shattered the knee. He was in the hospital for 1 week had an external fixator on for 2 weeks in which he couldn't do anything at all by himself (hence when I quit my job) then he was in a walking boot for 5 months and I drove him to rehab every day, he had an allergic reaction to the metal plates so they had to take those out early. He finally went back to work one year after the accident, was at work about 5 months and couldn't do it anymore so now he has been off since last july (2007) and we are waiting for a donor part to replace part of his knee, which hopefully will allow him to go back to work....if the company is still there....I have a hard time with it sometimes because if was me that was busted up it would be fine, I could still do my job. The lady that hit us had no insurance (not that I wanted millions or anything but at least what dh has lost in his salary) and took off after she hit us, and right now she's in jail. Amanda thats a great story it gives me some hope!

[Amanda]

Originally Posted by Hokuspocus

The lady that hit us had no insurance (not that I wanted millions or anything but at least what dh has lost in his salary) and took off after she hit us, and right now she's in jail. Amanda thats a great story it gives me some hope!

You know, the lady that hit me was underinsured. I got enough to pay off my school loans but I certainly didn't become a millionaire. I had witnesses to my accident that said she crossed in front of me and that I was obeying the speed limit and trafic laws. Even that didn't help.
I think about what would have happened if I got more $$$ but oh well.
The whole thing did give me a new perspective on things!
And I'm a lot more defensive driver!

[Hokuspocus]

There was an off duty emt in a car behind us and someone who worked for the texas department of transportion, who went and chased this lady down for us, they all said it was clearly her fault and she was on drugs! The bad thing is that dh was a good driver before but has become really bad now, and I don't know what to do! He's so scared of someone hitting him that he just doesn't think right? It's really just kind of sad...

[spotty4]

Amanda and Hokus, I'm so sorry to hear of your personal plights. Amanda, I'm so glad you've recovered. And Hokus, I know exactly what you mean about that "guilt" or "if only it had been me" line of thinking. But you just can't do that to yourself. That's not how it went down, so you gotta deal w/ how the cookie crumbled, one way or another. I'm glad everyone is in one piece (so to speak) and on the mend. Its amazing how life deals us tremendous blows ... in an instant.

[UKcats06]

I remember being a carefree kid like kids can't be anymore. Riding bikes a couple miles around the neighborhood just coming home when it's dark, playing with neighborhood kids. Its just not like that anymore and it makes me sad. And its not like I'm that old! My sister who is 13 can't do that stuff anymore because you just never know who is going to drive up and throw you in the back of a van or something! She can go like down the street and maybe another street away, but thats about it, and she has her cell phone with her all the time, just in case. Its just sad that kids can't just be carefree anymore.

You just can't trust people today like you used to be able to. My sister's friend is moving next month and her parents were going to buy a house in the same school district, but the house they looked at had a sexual predator that lived in the neighborhood, so they ended up buying a house in a different district. I can't tell whether this is a good or bad thing. Good because the technology/tracking is available now to be able to see if there is a sexual predator living near you. Not that if you buy a house without one anywhere near you that they can't just move next door. Of course its a bad thing because there are so many out there now, or at least being caught, that you have to be aware of who is around you.

When I have kids I don't want to have to worry about things like this, but I guess in these times, you have to. I can't tell if its scary to see whats out there, or if its scary to see what is becoming of the people in this world. Was it always like this, and it just wasn't monitored as much, or is this new?

Another life changing event was when I was in a car accident. I guess those are life changing for many people! I was in an accident with my friend driving and she lost control of an explorer and flipped over about 4 times. My friend who was driving, another friend in the car, and myself walked away from the accident with just scratches. I was in the backseat with no seatbelt on and after flipping so many times, my worst injury was a black eye. I still to this day can't believe I survived, let alone had almost no injury from it. The even more amazing thing is that a couple weeks later I found out I had a 12 lb cyst on my ovary that if it would have burst, would have killed me. I even survived calling my mom (it was her car) while we were on spring break driving through Talahassee (she was home in Cinci)! She of course was just happy we were all ok, but I still hear about it now and then in things like "your sister is never going on spring break like you did". I'll take that any day over having a life changing injury or worse, not being here.

Anyway, after that accident I don't take life for granted anymore. I actually got a little paranoid and turned a bit hypochondriac (sp?) after because I thought if I can survive that, something worse must be waiting to get me!

Thanks for starting this thread! I needed to remind myself not to take life for granted!

[Roxswood]

Meeting my DH and having children. I really do feel like my heart is split between the three of them, and wandering around outside my body and outside my control. I worry about one of them every day. I know life will always hold fear for me now.