My Darling

I got a stack of pictures in the mail from my mom today. There were pictures of her pink peonies that are thriving this year, pictures of her new baby chicks, and pictures of my sister on her prom night. Before she left to meet up with her friends, my sister had someone take a bunch of pictures of her in her dress, capturing that moment of beauty that all teenage girls dream about exuding on their prom night. She looks fantastic. A little while later, she hopped in my mom's car and headed to her friend's house. She's only had her drivers license for a few months and is, after all, a teenager, so when the deer jumped out in front of her car, she panicked, swerved to miss it, and lost control of the vehicle. The car went down an embankment, rolled, and landed upside down in water. My sister had her seatbelt on, and after a moment of shock, she climbed out the window, took a picture of the wreck, and called her friend to come get her. She walked away with just a small bruise on her leg, and one sleeve of her dress slightly torn. She went to prom.

It would be impossible for me to put into words the sadness I would feel if I were to lose my little sister. She is vivacious, adorable, immensely talented, and so full of life. Like a typical teenager, she feels guilt and trauma over the wreck and for totalling our mom's car. But I hope she knows that there is no car, no millions of cars, worth more than she is.