February 7th (Note from a Thankful Dad)

Feeling EXTRA thankful today.  On February 7th 2002 there was a large windstorm that blew through Eugene.  The storm caused a lot of damage and I was involved in an accident on the corner of 13th and Pearl.  For those of you who have not heard the story, I was a passenger in a truck that was hit by a falling tree that was blown down in the storm.  Whether you think I am very lucky for surviving or incredibly unlucky for having been hit by a falling tree, I am extremely thankful that I survived.  Two of my buddies were in the truck with me and they are OK as well.

This morning as I was getting ready to leave for work I went into Peter's room to say good morning and to tell him to have a great day.  He was just laying in his crib with a big smile on his face - he is such a happy kid.  I gave him a kiss on the forehead, told him to have a great day and headed off to work.  As I commuted to work the thought crossed my mind that if  things had gone differently on that stormy February night Peter would not even exist. Needless to say, thinking about the possibility that Peter might have never existed sent shivers down my spine.  Ever since 2002, February 7th has always been a emotional day for me, but having a child took it to a higher level.

Over the years, lots of people have told me how lucky I was that day - I couldn't agree more.  It's easy to feel lucky, but I want to give a shout out to all the Firefighters and Paramedics who helped rescue me. There's John Ticer, one of paramedics on the scene (I wish I could remember the names of the other guys, I'm forever grateful) and Darrel, the City of Eugene employee with the backhoe who arrived to do the heavy lifting. It was a long night, and they put in long hours and hard work in difficult and dangerous conditions.  They deserve a lot of credit for my survival and in turn for Peter being here today.   After the accident, my buddies (that were in the truck) and I went to both Fire Stations that were involved in the rescue and the City of Eugene Public Works to thank Darrel. 

I imagine some day I will explain this all to Peter and hopefully he will understand just how thankful I am that a bunch of people came together on a stormy night to save his dad.  I think Peter will be forever thankful too. For now, since he doesn't have the ability to understand any of this, I am going to help him with his Thank You.

Happy to report that February 7th 2013 is a calm beautiful day in Eugene  :)

Jake