This past weekend I felt the weight of the world slip beneath my feet as I lost control of my grip from one little phone call.
Since I was little, I have been surrounded by race cars and racetracks and they have never scared me, until this day. I have grown up with a Father who has raced almost anything with an engine. His love for speed has passed onto me and I aspire to be like him every day. This is why I am studying Entrepreneurship at Lynn, so I can one day carry on my Father’s legacy by running the family business along side him.
I have been working with my Dad since I was 14. Whether I was helping out at the office, running car shows or talking to customers I just wanted to learn to be like him. It has not been easy and I still have a lot to learn. Some of my favorite moments are when we go on long road trips and spend hours in the car just talking about how we can better the company.
This past weekend was supposed to be like any other weekend spent at the track: late nights, early mornings, loud cars and heart racing excitement as I watch from the pits. There is nothing like the sound of a car zooming past me at 130 mph. My body shakes, my ears ring and I pray that my Dad will get out the car after a few laps around the track. I pray that he wins.
Never have I been scared of losing my Dad. The thought had just never crossed my mind, although you would think that it would considering his favorite activity puts him in an insane amount of danger. However, all of that changed when someone hit his car while going 130 mph.
For all the daddy’s girls in the world I am sure you can understand this fear. I have been my Dad’s shadow for as long as I can remember and the thought of leaving the track without him left me breathless.
When I arrived to the scene of the accident I was so very thankful that my Dad was there sitting in the ambulance completely coherent. I could not run fast enough to hug him.
Since the accident, I have wanted to do extra special things to make him feel loved and appreciated. Which is different because we have never been the type to outwardly display our affection.
It is unfortunate that it takes a tragedy to bring you closer together to loved ones. I was fortunate enough that this tragedy did not take my Dad away from me, but gave me more respect for my hero.
After a tragic experience like this, I advise others to always act with love, kindness and appreciation because you never know when a devastating scenario like a car accident is going to happen.
