Distraction

Cold. Lifeless. Dead.

Disbelief shivered down my spine. The remains of a guardian lay at my feet. The once stalwart signal now lay across the path it once so closely guarded. Again, I shivered, knowing that on any given day I might have been standing next to the sign that was ripped from its base. Its spinal cord, life-line severed and frayed beyond use. The car bumper caved-in, the hood accordion-folded, and the radiator was kissing the engine block. Debris from sign and automobile was scattered across multiple lanes of roadway.

While unhurt but shaken, the careless driver thought out loud, “I need to hang up. A pedestrian crosswalk sign just hit my car.”

My simple and angry response was, “Hang-Up and Drive!"