I was listening to the Best of Queen in my dad's truck when all of the sudden my dad's

arm grips mine in a death grip he pulls me close and says get down. I duck down next the seat

and my dad is still holding my hand as he ducks down into the same spot. I do not understand but

I will soon know why our trip was abridged permanently; as we were crossing the intersection, a white truck

speed into us. Everything went in slow motion; we flipped over and rolled into the middle of the

intersection. Out car belly up in submission to the crash. I felt a sharp pain in my shoulder the

pain was unbelievable. I heard my dad's urgent voice and knew he was on the phone calling in

an ambulance for us. He told me to try to move and get out of the car but by then I was blacking

out. I slowly released my grip on his hand and let the darkness conceal me.

I woke up with a start in a hospital room where many people were all around me talking

and hugging and crying. They seemed to be wearing shirts that said they were adherents of a

certain cause. However, I couldn't tell what… Then somebody noticed me awake and said, "It's

a miracle! She's awake!" and then I was swarmed with people who I now recognized as my

family and friends and teammates. So many questions…! I am going on overload trying to keep

track of everything. Then, blackness, total blackness. Later I woke up with only a few people in

my room this time these people were my mom, my dad, my brother, my mom's boyfriend Mel,

my dad's fiancé Tricia, and my mom's boyfriend's son Spencer. My mom comes over and starts

to cry, like she hasn't seem me in years. Everyone brushes away tears of joy. "oh Sydney…

you…we thought…" my dad says as he sits next to my bed crying and all of the sudden I realize

what had happened, it all flew back to me. "Syd, its 2015… you have been in a coma since the

accident in 2013. We were driving to Costco to get your new glasses and somebody hit us and

we flipped and you passed out and I called 911 and-" his voice wavered but he continued "you

dislocated and broke your shoulder in three places, the doctors here fixed everything they could

but they say that you won't be able to swim anymore."

"WHAT!? No, no, I'm still gonna swim I don't care if I permanently damage myself I'm

swimming no matter what!" I said trying to start an altercate battle that I would win. But I was

surprised with what he said next.

"Ok honey… but you have to know that it's going to be very painful." And with that I knew that

he had condoned me for now.

"Yes, I don't care." I said stubbornly "I'm not gonna give up." So for now our little dissent was

over and I relaxed with a smile and for the first time noticed the cherubic looking children on the

walls. They looked so angelic and soft, so peaceful like a sleeping child. In the next few days I

was the eminent Arizonian 13 year old who survived a car crash, a broken and dislocated

shoulder, and a coma that lasted two years. The news casters loved it but I didn't. I didn't like the

people and reporters bombarding me and my family with questions any time we stepped outside.

It was mind blowing how much people wanted my story. Truth be told I didn't care a whole lot

about anything else but my family and close friends and teammates. Sooner or later all of this

will die down, I told myself repeatedly. Finally, one day it all stopped and I was able to go to the

recovery room without being stopped by many people. I loved it! It was if they were exorcized

out by some magical force field that protected us. It was amazing! In all of my recovery time I

began to fabricate stories of lost items coming to life and running away and coming back. I wrote

so much I made a story book just for my family and me. One of my characters, an irate doll

named Missy strode around all proper-like until one day she needs the help of the total

opposite Tami to find her way back home. It was so fun I began to make it my mission to get

better so I can swim and expand my ideas for more stories. It was that day when I realized that I

can rotate my right shoulder in a full circle… how strange just the day before I could only do a

semi-circle. Well this is good, I'm improving! I thought to myself joyously and got ready to go

practice. However, what I did not know was that if I went to the pool to try to swim, I would

maybe not even come out the same…