It has been a hard week. My brother, Nathan, got hurt in another motorcycle accident. His second.
Several years ago he was driving home at night and collided with a deer and was thrown from his bike and sent barrel rolling down the highway at 60 miles an hour.
He recovered, and if not for his helmet, he would not be alive today.
He walked away from that accident with some broken ribs, and a lot of road rash. With a lot of help, he was able to recover at home.
This time, he wasn’t as lucky. My brother was driving home in Albert Lea. He was just going across town. A teenager backed out of their driveway right in front of him. He didn’t have time to stop or get out of the way. After slamming on his brakes he was thrown from the bike. His left arm took the brunt of the force, followed by his right shoulder. He wasn’t wearing a helmet and scraped his head. Fortunately, this only caused a lot of blood, but nothing permanent.
He was airlifted to Mayo Clinic in Rochester where he spent this past week recovering. I don’t know how much recovering a person does during just a week from his injuries. He had surgery to put in screws and plates in his left arm, which broke in two places. He dislocated his right arm initially, as well as breaking his right shoulder. And of course, there was some road rash.
He came home on Sunday, with his left arm in a cast and his right arm in a brace. He can’t move his right arm at all because of the broken shoulder, however his right hand is functional.
He can’t really use his left hand, although he can move that arm.
It’s going to be a long road to recovery. A lot of people have graciously offered to help. Thank you.
I was wondering what the point of sharing this story could be. I could write how I think people should watch out for motorcyclists. Or how distracted driving is a problem. Or that people really just shouldn’t drive motorcycles. All of those things can be said and more.
I don’t know why things like this happen. I’m grateful it wasn’t worse. I’m glad my brother is alive.
My dad tried to tell me God did this for us. There is a reason. Hearing that I felt upset.
I tend to be of the mind that things happen for a reason. I can only think of one reason why my brother got in another accident. So he never has to survive another motorcycle accident again.
For the past month my brother was hounding me to ride with him. He was pressuring me to buy a motorcycle. He even bought a second bike and fixed it, with the intention we ride together. I even took it for a ride.
Finally, a couple weeks ago I told him I couldn’t. It’s too dangerous. If I got in an accident I’d lose my livelihood and maybe much more. I have to be careful. I read and write for a living, so it’s important to be careful with my hands and my head.
A reader approached me this week. “Are you Eli, the newspaper guy?” She asked.
“Of course,” I responded.
“You are the newspaper,” she said. “I saw that story last week… Can you do another?”
Of course.
If I had decided to buy that motorcycle then it might have been me in that accident. I may very well have been with him that day, working on that motorcycle, and been the person driving across town.
If that were the case then I wouldn’t be able to do the newspaper. And if I couldn’t do the paper, it would crush me.
Sometimes people are disregarded or ignored for saying “drive safely” or “let me know when you get home.” Please, take those extra seconds on the road and be careful.