Chapter 1
I’ve made many mistakes and misconceptions in my lifetime, yet there are only a few things that really stick out. Ever since I was a little girl, I’ve always strived to help people. When I was younger, about 8 or 9, my grandmother had to go to the chiropractor. She had recently strained her back and was feeling all sorts of displeasure. My younger sister, 6 at the time, and I had waited in the waiting room for about 30 minutes before we started to got bored. Being the growing kids we were, we wanted to go play in the rain. We walked out into the small parking lot of our hometown, jumping in every puddle we could find. I was her big sister, but the surprising thing is, my younger self had always looked up at her, despite her height. I guess that’s a little different than what most older siblings would say...
Minutes later, the rain still pouring down, an elderly man walked toward the door of the chiropractic clinic. The stairs and passageway were extra moist and it was obvious it would be easy to lose your balance and fall. The man, unable to control his balance, started to slip, yet my feet couldn’t move. I watched him, struggling to catch himself, and I could see he was going to fall if someone didn’t help him. My little sister looked traumatized, not knowing how to help. She was too small to help such a tall man to his feet. I, on the other hand, was stronger, yet I was immobile. It felt similar to an out-of-body experience. It was like a trance and everything that I’d known had left my body, every bit of mercy, gone. I stood there as he subsequently couldn’t hold himself up anymore. He fell back, laying there for about 5-10 seconds before people started running out of the building. An ambulance had come soon after to transfer him to urgent care, but I was still glued to the hard surface.
Suddenly, I felt a tap on my shoulder. I blinked, taking in everything, speechless. My grandmother told me something before helping us into the car, making sure we were both buckled. I couldn’t stop pondering why I didn’t and couldn’t help. Now, 7 years later, I still think of this man and wonder if he’s okay. Is he still alive today? I often ask myself these questions, reminiscing the event over and over in my mind.
There are times when I wish I could go back and alter my actions, however, I can’t. I think as long as we all learn from our mistakes and keep moving forward, they just serve as lessons to better ourselves for our future. Mistakes provide knowledge and the power to turn you into something greater than before.
As Peter McWilliams once said, “Mistakes, obviously, show us what needs improving. Without mistakes, how would we know what we need to work on?”
Thank you for reading! I hope you liked it!
