Sadness has darkened our home this week.  A close friend and co-worker of my husband's died a tragic death Tuesday.  Even though I never had the opportunity to meet the man, I feel as though I knew him well since my husband talked about him constantly.

They both work construction and were working down in the Philadelphia area.  The tragedy happened only a few minutes after arriving at work.  I won't talk about the details, but the friend was hit by a car speeding down an off ramp (in a construction zone), running a red light with the driver possibly talking on the cell phone.  The friend was behind barriers in the safe zone and she headed right towards him.  He never had a chance.  The accident is under investigation.

Fortunately, Bill, my husband, never saw the accident.  The truth is, there would have been 2 killed if Bill hadn't gone back to the truck to get a flag.  Within the 1 - 2 minutes, all this occurred. 

Bill took the death hard.  As soon as his friend was taken to the hospital, he was right behind them.  The friend's wife flipped when she was given the news at the hospital and Bill was there to support her.

Bill is feeling better now after talking that evening and then talking to the family the next day and helping with the funeral plans. 

I am thankful to God that Bill was not hurt, but feel what the friend's family is going through.  He left behind a wife of 3 years and a daughter who just celebrated her 1st birthday.

Where am I headed with this post?  Well, there are a few reasons I decided to write about this: 

1.  Speeding to get where you are going is not necessarily going to get you there sooner.  Chances are good that it will cause a major delay due to an accident of some sort at some point.  It may end up costing someones life or possibly your own and hurt many others in the process.  Be on time instead of trying to make up lost time.

2.  Talking on a cell phone while driving definitely distracts from your driving.  If you need to talk on the phone, use an earpiece of some sort.  At least this way you have both hands on the wheel.

3.  There is a reason the speed limit in construction zones is lower.  People are working on the side of the road where it can be dangerous.

4.  Spend time with your loved ones as much as possible.  Live one day at a time.  You never know when it will be your last.  

I have seen too many people in a rush these days.  If you are in a rush, start slowing down.  Rushing tends to have consequences down the line.  Start to appreciate life and what's important to you.  You may not have a tomorrow to put things off to.