An Accident... Forgiving Yourself and Moving On...

Years ago, someone very close to me was driving on a dark winter's night.  She was not driving recklessly or fast, but it was winter and a little icy and dark.  She rounded a corner in a subdivision and a black object flew onto the road in front of her - it looked like a black garbage bag - she braked and tried to avoid hitting it but it came out too fast and she hit it and slid down the road with it under her car for a few metres. It was not a garbage bag.  It was a 10 or 11 year old boy who was tobogganing into the road from a snowbank alongside the subdivision street.  There wasn't anything she could have done other than being psychic to avoid it.  Thankfully, he was ultimately okay, but he did suffer a head injury and was hospitalized for some time until he recovered.  Until he was okay, it was a part of her - a constant piece of her mind was dedicated to worry and a feeling of responsibility and a need to be engaged in active thought towards his recovery. I imagine it still is today...

I thought a lot about this after seeing Northern Light Theatre's production of An Accident.  Things happen, accidents happen, we do not intend them to happen.  They happen when we are not even being careless.  They are not intentional.  They are accidents.  But we own them.  We dwell on them.  We feel responsible.  We need things to be okay. And on the other side, when we are damaged by others, however unintentionally, we want redress.  We want someone to be responsible.  We want it not to just be an accident. We want to assign blame and have an answer for the why did this happen? This production so beautifully articulated these zig-zagging feelings of responsibility and blame and of the connection between those who are injured and those who have injured.  Michael Peng and Melissa Thingelstad play injurer and injured respectively - neither completely blameless or responsible - both angry and sad and tied together. Trevor Schmidt's direction and their performances are heart-breaking and ultimately cathartic.

I have had the extreme pleasure of seeing a lot of theatre this season due to my good fortune and winning that awesome prize.  Based on the quality of the work and the thought-provoking and  engaging theatre I have seen at Northern Light Theatre this season I will definitely be buying season's tickets for next year.

Comments

Unknown said…
“They are not intentional. They are accidents. But we own them. We dwell on them. We feel responsible.” – Absolutely true! Sometimes, we are not forced to be held responsible for the accidents but since we dwell on them, we feel we have to be responsible. Sadly, there are people who don’t take their responsibilities and let others suffer. When you, or someone you know, have cases of personal injury that are being disregarded, it’s better that you file a case with the help of your trusted lawyers so that you can receive the compensation that you deserve. Justice is a basic human right and no one should be deprived of it.

-Guadalupe Puthoff-
5/27/2013 11:06 AM
Unknown said…
Guadalupe is right. Justice is a basic human right and no one should be deprived of it. It's nice that you took responsibility for the accident. If you think it's the right thing to do, just do it. You can ask the help of your lawyers in cases like this, so that your kindness won't be abused, too. :)

MastrangeloLawOffices.com
8/07/2013 8:15 AM
Finster said…
You guys know that I am talking about a play, right?
8/17/2013 3:31 PM
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