Almost a Hero

I was riding with my aunt, uncle, and their three kids through Westminster, MD on our way up to see my grandfather for his 77^th birthday yesterday. Little did I know I would get a chance to (almost) be a hero.

As we pulled up to a red light, about 10 minuets from his house, my aunt noticed a kid riding a four wheeler on the property to the right. I brought it to the attention of my cousins, who watched in awe as the kid zoomed around the farm land. In a split second we went from jealous to concerned, as the kid tried to make a sharp turn and fell off the ATV, flipping it twice and landing under it. It was surreal to see… one of those events that seem to go in slow motion. It was an immediate change in attitude for everyone in the car.

After realizing the kid wasn’t moving, I opened the door and jumped out into the middle of the road. I began sprinting towards the property. My first hurtle was a guard rail on the side of the road; the next, a barb wire fence that surrounded the farm land. Once over the fence, I came across a stream. It was small enough to jump over, so I got a running start and went for it. I landed in a pool of mud and pulled myself out. As I got closer to the ATV I started to see a little girl, no older than 14, crawl out from under it. She was crying but seemed to be more startled than hurt. I stopped about five yards from her and asked if she was okay. She told me she was fine, turned around and drove away. I walked back to the car in a daze, still living in a moment that didn’t really exist. It wasn’t until I got back into the car that I realized my clothes and shoes were covered in mud. I felt like I had to ask my uncle what happened, like I wasn’t even there. We ended up going to some crab restaurant in the middle of nowhere, where my muddy atire seemed to be quite normal. Moral of the story… you can always buy a new pair of Nikes.