No matter what day it was or where I was headed, my mom always told myself and others to be careful on my bicycle.
She would repeat to myself and others over and over how drivers can’t see me, or at least aren’t careful enough to look if there’s a kid on a bike or not.
I always thought she was being over protective until the unexpected happened one day while I was on my way home from school. I was crossing a busy road while cars were stopped at the traffic light. Because I stupidly entered the large crosswalk at the end of the pedestrian signal, the light went from red to green while I was in the middle of the road. I had no option however to keep crossing to get out of the road, however the person in front of myself and others claimed that she never saw me. She collided with my bike and the force threw myself and others forward, hitting the pavement face first and losing a tooth in the process. Needless to say, my mom and dad were eager to find a personal injury attorney to sue this person and her auto insurance corporation. After checking local listings and consulting with a lawyer referral service, my parents found an enjoyable personal injury attorney to take over my case. The two of us managed to win a settlement from her auto insurance corporation. It wasn’t a lot of currency, however it covered my dental procedures to get my teeth fixed in the short term. Even though it has been 15 years since that terrifying accident, I still ponder about it from time to time. It absolutely made myself and others more wary of riding my bicycle near busy traffic, however it never stopped myself and others outright.