You know that Springsteen song, where the guy
goes out one night and
ditches his family? I never
understood how a
person could do that, just throw their life
away. Until the
bank collapse wiped me out, I lost my
job, and my daughter
was born with autism. The bills were
insurmountable,
my home was a minefield, my wife cringed
at the sight of me.

And so one night, instead of turning
right towards home, I went
straight. I don’t think I had a plan, but
I found myself at
the on-ramp to the Thruway. The light
turned green. The Chevy
in front of me began to turn. I
put my foot on the
gas pedal and turned on my signal
to follow him on
to the ramp, when a pickup truck ran
the stop light and smashed
into the Chevy. The collision
was awful. I called
911. When the police arrived,
I told them what had
happened. They took my statement and asked
me to stay in town
so they could follow up if needed.
I testified in
court. The pickup driver got sent to
jail for manslaughter.

But I never got on the Thruway
When the police let
me go, I went straight home. That night, and
every night after.