You are the Center of Someone’s Universe

Take care. Don’t get hit by a truck today.

I saw death this morning. Fresh and horrible.

On the way to work, the bus stopped by the scene of an accident. Accidents happen, so I thought nothing of it. Actually, I thought ‘mind your own business and give the unfortunate a bit of privacy while they deal with insurance formalities’. But this time, the collective gasp of other commuters was unusually loud. I looked out the window. My stomach churned. I repressed a gag reflex and turned back to reading the news on my phone. ‘No. I don’t want to see that. Please driver, drive on.’ The sight was gruesome. There was an idle concrete truck and a man, also idle. There was blood and brains too. You get the horror. Our bus moved along but my mind stayed with the man. ‘Who is he? Does he have children? Where is his wife?’ He looked like construction worker. Probably a migrant from another province. ‘So who was he sending money to back home? Who did he owe money to? What work won’t get done today?’
I thought about my own life. ‘What if that was me lying there, crushed under a the wheel of a truck?’ Strangely, I didn’t feel terrified by the prospect of being driven on by a concrete truck. I realized that I didn’t feel sad for the man, either. But I was distressed at the thought that so many people would have to go on without me. ‘Who would make sure they are looked after? Who would be there for them when they feel sad or angry, or hungry?’ I thought of the people whose life I’m in. People I motivate. People I teach. People I make happy. People I protect. People I empower. My family. My friends. My students. My business partners. My clients. ‘What if they had to move on without me? Would they spiral into depression? Would they abandon their dreams? Would they live a miserable life?’
There’s a good chance that they’ll survive losing me to a construction site. ‘But what kind of life will they have? What will that concrete truck take away from them?’
Every one of us is unique. Irreplaceable. And we are responsible for someone’s happiness, livelihood and prospect. We are someone’s safety net, insurance and guardian angel. We are someone’s ride to a better life and hope to recovery.
Here’s the bottom line: you are the center of someone’s universe. Your life is what makes theirs what it is and what it will be. So take care when you cross the road, especially when a concrete truck is coming your way. That is all.