You are probably squinting right now, looking at this picture of…something you can not quite make out. I think of it as a crime scene photo, the remnants of a heinous crime committed against unsuspecting individuals through no fault of their own. No, there isn’t any blood splatter or brain matter or anything left of any one’s person, just tangled bedclothes and yes, that’s a ceiling beam. And, oh yes, those are tree branches. I’m not sure if you can make it out or if my memory sees these things clearly, my clothes freshly washed and hung, in the space we are peering through that used to be my closet. Oddly shaped and maniacally arranged, this room held dreams and disputes, love and loss in every crevice. Until, one morning the roof came crashing down under the weight of an enormous tree that broke free from it’s bondage and unleashed itself upon my body, crashing into my life like an unwanted party guest.
The weather man had called for a storm, it was 6 :15am and my alarm had just sounded but I was already awake. My newly realized pregnancy had been keeping me up at all times of the night. On any other morning my head would have been somewhere near where that beam now rests but my fiance’s upside-down sleeping position caused me to sleep that way as well. As I reached over and turned off the alarm the cable went out. I reached out to turn the TV back on, needing to know how long I had to languish in the bed because I was not leaving for the bus in this weather. It was now 6:23 am, I remember this distinctly because it is the last time that I saw time illuminated on that clock. One moment, I was rubbing my belly thinking about where to stop for breakfast and in the next moment my fiance and I both were looking puzzled as to where this strange creaking noise was coming from. Two seconds later, we got our answer as the roof came raining down around us. We screamed in horror. Instantly terrified, we called out to one another, each making sure the other was okay. At the moment when the tree fell we’d both been laying partially on our sides facing each other, but with the beams and ceiling pieces we could not even touch. Luckily for us, his brother, who would normally be on his way home from work, had the night off and heard the loud noise. We heard him call out to us, but could not see him for all the debris. We yelled out to him that we were okay but we needed help as quickly as possible. He went out and called 911 but had to call back several times. The storm had caused downed trees and a house fire a few blocks away which was tying up not only the 911 operators but the personnel as well.
We kept each other calm as best we could. All I could think about was my unborn child, and breathing which was becoming more and more difficult. It was now about 7:15am and paramedics had finally arrived. They were unable to do much but they did manage to move a piece of ceiling so that we could see a little more. Mike was one of the first responders, he gave my fiance an oxygen mask, which he passed to me and helped me put on my face. I was beginning to hyperventilate a bit and I was just so scared. I just kept asking, “Where are the firefighters? When are they coming?”. They did finally reach our location about 20 minutes later. The paramedics were cleared to bring in a stretcher and remove my fiance through the opening they’d created , through the house and out the front door. I was still trapped. Outside there were news cameras, and a dozen or more firefighters and lots of equipment. They had begun working to free me, using chainsaws which made everything vibrate and hurt my back. I cried intermittently, because I was afraid that they wouldn’t be able to get me out. I thought that I would die there with my new life inside of me. The paramedic held my hand and comforted me as best as he could. I still did not know that there was an actual tree laying on top of me. Using an inflatable lift, they were finally able to lift the massive tree enough for the paramedics to slide me out. Suddenly, I remembered and shouted, “I’m not wearing any underwear!” They covered me with a sheet and transported me out. It was in the ambulance that I learned I’d been under a tree. Overheard from the other paramedic, Rhonda, as she called my mom and told her to get to the hospital right away. I’d asked her incredulously, “Why did you tell my mother I was under a tree?”. Her response, “Because, you were”.
In this amazing accident, I sustained a broken hip and pelvic ring and temporary paralysis of my right hand. I regained full use of my right hand after about 5 months, with minimal occasional pain and discomfort. 7 months later, I gave birth by c-section to a healthy, happy baby boy. I still experience tenderness, swelling and pain in my hip but in the match-up of me vs. tree, I won, definitely.