i'm a little paranoid to drive now. the first time i was in a car wreck was about eight years ago. i made a left turn as the yellow light turned red and someone in the on-coming traffic ran the light and ran into the passenger side of my car. it was one month after i'd gotten my license. i banged my left knee into the dashboard, had a front bumper lying in the middle of the street detached from my car, a dented driver-side door that hardly opened and a hood crumpled to no end.

my confidence bruised, i didn't want to drive anymore. i went back to making my carpool buddy's mom drive us to school and my mom pick us up. that went on for a few months.

then a week ago this guy runs into my back end at a red light. harmless, so i thought. i come out with frustrating back pains that won't go away. more frustrating is that i'm a little jumpy about driving again. worried that someone else might run into me. and what if this time he hurts more than my rear end bumper and my back?

i hate driving. i always have.