It was 7:42 p.m. on Devil’s Night in 1993. PM Dawn’s “I’d Die Without You” was on the radio in the gray Ford Taurus. We were on our way to the Mt. Alvernia High School dance traveling the winding Evergreen Road, treacherous on any given day, let alone dark and rainy Devil’s Night.
We started to swerve a lot, later to learn the axle had broken, causing us to turn into oncoming traffic, and flip after hitting a tree. The car landed in a marshy creek on the side of the road, and I was trapped underneath. The first responders were beyond amazing and got me to the hospital, scared and shaken, a nurse placed a small cut-out photo in my hand. A pic of my grandfather who had passed away two years before.
The photo was in my pocket as we were celebrating Dia De Los Muertos at school. We built an altar in honor of those who we respected and loved from our past. To me, it was a sign that he was looking over me. Thirty-one years later I still pay homage to this sacred day. Happy to be here, ya jagoff!
