I'm still lucky enough to have never lost a core member of my family yet, so my story may seem a little silly to some of you in comparison to what you've had to go through in life.
On the worst day of my life so far I had recently graduated from college with my BA during the start of the great recession. Like most of my peers, I was looking for full-time employment with benefits, while I was simultaneously working during the summer doing logging, roofing, excavation, and rigging to squeak by. I was living with my parents because I couldn't afford my own place.
Excited about the prospect of taking a new girl I had met out on a first date, I made the poor decision to drive to a friend's restaurant in the rain the day before Christmas Eve. While ascending a hill at about 45mph the rain turned to black ice and my truck lost traction after going over a small imperfection in the road sending me head-on into an oak tree with my passenger. We took a ride to the hospital and both of us checked out beat up but otherwise OK, they sent me home with two ten dollar tylenol. Through the next couple days my injuries began hurting more, eventually a large lump the size of my kneecap formed on my leg and I had to use crutches. My entire core hurt. I took a harder hit than my passenger.
The next day on Christmas Eve I met up with my passenger and we went out for another (successful) date, sharing a smoothie. Turns out my passenger also shared some noro virus with me that day.
I spent the next day during Christmas on the floor next to my bed, upstairs at my parents house, vomiting into a bucket with a thoroughly beat up body that felt like I went a few rounds in the boxing ring. There I was, no truck, no job, no dog (we had to put him to sleep just before the accident), in pain all over, vomiting into a trash can, and then it happened.
I hit the lowest point in my life.
Everybody Loves Raymond came on the TV downstairs and I couldn't shut it off. I was vomiting so I couldn't call for help. I was in pain so I couldn't get up. My leg was swollen and I couldn't go down the stairs to leave. I had no choice but to sit through 30 minutes of the worst hour of the worst day of my life so far. I made a to-do list that day - Get a new vehicle, get a new job, get a new place to live, and move on with my life. It took me a good 6 months to sort all of that out. It put me on the trajectory I'm still following today.
