I was involved in a very scary car accident yesterday morning. But although my little red Opel Corsa is a write-off, I am thankfully not. And that’s what counts!

Apart from a sore neck and bruised ribs, as well as a funny-looking seatbelt imprint across my chest, I am in one piece and still smiling. I can even laugh at jokes my friends keep sending me to cheer me up – despite the fact that my ribs hurt when I do so. All I can say is thank goodness for seatbelts and the incredible difference they can actually make in an accident. On that note: please remember to always wear your seatbelts, people!

It doesn’t matter if you are just going to the shop around the corner from your house, or if you arrogantly believe that you are the best driver in the world. What matters is that you can loose concentration for a split second, or you can easily get in someone else’s way.

I was hit by a car that came flying around a blind corner, doing nearly 80km/hr. The driver was apparently late for a job interview. I might theoretically have been in his way because I was turning into a road. But I looked both ways before I turned, and I honestly didn’t see him until he was on top of me. Witnesses say his car’s bum was up in the air at a 75 degree angle, and my car nearly rolled over because of the impact alone.

So now what? I’m stranded at home until further notice. But hey, I’d rather be stranded at home than lying in hospital! And I’ve still got two hands and ten fingers, which means I can use my computer to get work done. So all is good! Until I’m back on the road again, that is…. In the meantime I’ve just got to keep reminding myself how lucky I am!

Life is hard sometimes. It throws unexpected surprises at you, nasty surprises that you really don’t want to have to deal with. But what doesn’t kill you only makes you stronger.

We might live in a country where you can buy yourself a driver’s licence and where taxis pushing other cars off the road is pretty normal. But we also live in a country where people don’t think twice about stopping to help someone in need.

Compassionate South African bypassers – including our very own BossLady – made sure I was ok after the accident. So thanks a million to everyone who were late for work on Monday morning because they stopped to take care of a shell-shocked girl sitting in her smashed red car – uanble to move or know what to do.

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My car after the accident… hectic, hey?