The accident happened on Sunday, August 31st, 2003, a normal day by any measure other than the fact that it just happened to be my 35th birthday. One moment Taylor was riding her electric scooter around the circle in front of our home awaiting the arrival of a friend to go swimming and hang out with.
Twenty minutes later, she and I are in the emergency room where she is lying on a hospital bed having completely lost her sight, her hearing in one ear, her ability to speak coherently or even put two understandable words together and her ability to keep even the slightest amount of food down; she had no idea who she was, no idea who I was, nor any comprehension of what had happened and was happening to her, and she was combative, almost violent as a result.
The initial diagnosis: Massive head trauma with visible bleeding behind the eardrum with the distinct possibility of permanent brain damage, or worse. My heart went through the floor as I sat beside her awaiting the arrival of the CT scan technician and I came to the realization that I might lose my daughter Taylor, my only child and the most precious person in my entire world, and that even if she did survive, she might never be "Taylor" again.
She just this past summer had begun thinking about her future and setting her sights on what she would like to be when she grows up. Now in a matter of an instant, all thoughts of a long away, distant future were gone; now I was praying for her to just live.
By nothing short of a miracle Taylor not only did survive, but in merely a week, she returned to nearly her pre-accident state of health and is once again "Taylor". I owe her health to God of course, but also to the men and women who responded as quickly as they did. To the doctors who aided her and the surgeons who helped to repair her.
The depths of her injuries were unfathomable and her subsequent rehabilitation and the speed in which she has come out of it is very rewarding for all of us.
When I purchased the scooter and gave it to Taylor, she was given the keys along with a brand new helmet. Initially she wore the helmet, but the hot sun quickly made her uncomfortable and overheated, and the helmet soon came off. And while I fussed and threatened as most parents do, I did not insist. After all, she appeared to be riding it skillfully with safety very much on her mind, stop at all stop signs, slow down if not stop at all intersections even when she had the right-of-way, watch out for cars, both parked and moving, always yield to anyone else, be it a vehicle, bicyclist or pedestrian.
She was meticulous about following the rules, all except one, which proved to be the most important one of all. And, yes, I fully acknowledged that skinned knees and elbows were most likely inevitable at some point, but a fractured skull with the possibility of permanent brain damage or death never, ever, ever even crossed my mind.
I am well aware of how devastating the results can be by not heeding the warnings given on nearly every type of equipment, vehicle and toy out there, yet even I failed to follow them. I can assure you that the thought of getting back on her scooter or riding her bike or skating on her roller blades without a helmet from this point on will never even cross Taylor's mind.
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