Offerings

My sister and her family have apparently offended the gods of traffic. Recently her younger son was hit by a car. It's okay, he was not badly hurt, just had an big bump on his head and an acute case of embarrassment. Then this week her husband got in a car accident which has put paid to the newer car. Below is her version of events. I have called her husband B and his passenger L.

They were traveling in the middle lane. A car ahead of them in the left lane swerved to avoid an obstacle, hit the concrete medium, bounced off at a 90 degree angle cutting across the traffic, right in front of B who was driving. B's car hit the side front of their car, spun 180 degrees and moved into the left lane and bashed into the concrete median, and ended up facing backward towards on-coming traffic.

Luckily all traffic came to a dead halt. Police, Fire Trucks and Ambulances came. B and L (our house guest) had a little bit of whiplash. The driver of the other car, a 20 year old girl was hysterically sobbing, and her passenger, a young man, was the only one hurt. He had cut his head on the rear view mirror and was bleeding freely.

Here's the small world part of the story: The girl driver was a former student of B's! As a colleague of his noted: "I've had disgruntled students myself, but they usually just go complain to the dean; they don't try to murder me." We all had a good laugh. It was possible to laugh, since nobody was hurt, and it could have ended up so very badly. Lots of relief in that laughter.

I am wondering if the totalled car will be a sufficient sacrifice to an angry deity. Perhaps they should hang some fuzzy dice from the rearview of the still intact car as a symbol of their devotion and repentance.