I know this is a long story.
Two years ago my husband, myself and the two boys were on a much needed vacation to our favorite place in Florida. While we were there we experienced a series of mishaps. Most very minor an no big deal, but things just kept happening. It started, actually, at 3pm in the afternoon the day before we left. On that day we got the news that our son was severely allergic to milk. Any milk.
Ok, not a big deal, but he was 5 months old and at that age, it's pretty much a must have. This meant he needed a seriously hypoallergenic kind of formula. I had been breastfeeding him so this was just a shock all around. Especially since I was told repeatedly that breastfed babies don't have milk allergies. Uh huh. Anyway, this specific formula is very hard to find. I called practically every Walgreen's pharmacy (and a few others) for about an hour and a half before I actually found some in stock at a
Walgreen about 35 minutes from my home. Whew! However, I also had to get some down in Florida. Thankfully the
pharmacy called one of theirs down in Florida for us and they had enough time to order it for me so we would be supplied down there also.
We stayed at my father's place in Fort Myers Beach and used his car. First minor mishap was I went to turn the TV on and the thing started acting wacky. I was pretty sure I had broke it. Then we took his car out to an island and the thing would not start when we went to leave. UGH. We had to have a tow truck come get us. Thanks AAA! Then that night the ceiling fan literally fell out of the celling when I went to turn it on. I was pretty sure that after all of this he would never let me near anything of his again!!
The next evening we decided to go to Fort Myers Beach for dinner. It was amazing. An outdoor Greek
restaurant with a
fabulous Greek salad and an awe inspiring sunset. The kids were so well behaved and it felt like a true vacation. There was a really cool juggler on the beach who was juggling flaming torches. My three year old could not believe anyone could do that. It was getting later and the baby needed to eat so we headed back to my father's place.
All of us were happy, but the five month old was getting a little fussy. I had everything timed so he would eat when we got back from our dinner. On the way home, we see some commotion up ahead. Suddenly a police man jumps out of his vehicle and stops traffic. I am literally the next one to go past his car and he yells at me to turn around. I looked at him with confusion and said, "But I only have to go up to that turn RIGHT there." He said, "NO!" He then explained to me that I would have to turn around and make the trip around the island to get back into Fort Myers and into the entrance to the subdivision. I ask how low long that will take. He says
forty minutes. HUH? Are you serious? Meanwhile I have hungry baby in the back seat. I explain to him that I am not from here. I have no idea how to go around the entire island on a 40 minute trip then go into the city to get myself back to the entrance that is literally 100 feet in front of me. We go back and forth about the directions and he is throwing all these roads out at me and I look like a deer in the headlights. Have no idea where he is telling me to go. Then I explain the formula situation. Told him he could call my pediatrician to verify I am not lying. He still says no. So, I go park in a parking lot and he sees this. He comes over and says it will be at least three to four hours, but I am more than welcome to wait. This is where it all changes. The officer starts to get that
shaky voice, he then pulls me aside and says, "I didn't want to tell you this
in front of your family but, two children just died right there and we need to keep people out of the accident scene." Then he starts to get teary eyed. I hugged him. That was my first response. I said I was sorry because I could tell this had really upset him and being that my father had been a
sheriff for many years, I know these guys do get effected by what they see especially when it involves children. Then he says to me, "Go ahead and walk to the entrance and leave the car here, but I am telling you DO not, no matter what, look at the accident or let your child see it." I knew exactly what he was saying to me. He didn't want me or the kids to see the nightmare in the street. However, being that I walked RIGHT past it, I saw enough. As we were walking past the accident scene, the ambulance showed up (yes that is how close we were to witnessing the whole thing).
When we finally got home and the kids taken care of, I cried. And cried. At this point I had no details about what happened. All I could think about was the mom of these two children. My husband asked me why I was so upset and I tried to explain to him that a mom out there is experiencing her very worst nightmare and two little lives were gone (the boys who died were 6 and 1 year). Seeing the accident site made it feel so different. I wished my tears would take away some of the mom's tears. I knew that wouldn't happen but I couldn't NOT cry about it.
That is the shortest version I could come up with for this very long story. I always wished I could reach out to the mom of these little boys. I don't know what I would have said or done, I just wished I could do something. I think of her and her family from time to time and hope that she is doing as well as could be expected. Yesterday I thought of her again and looked up some information. I came across this article about the accident and the sentencing of the man who was driving the vehicle that struck this family that night. I was surprised at how much time he got in prison, but understand the reasoning behind it.
Jordy Martinez and Jesus Martinez, I hope wherever you are, you have found peace and love.
Maria Del Rosario Bustamante, I don't know you, but you have been in my thoughts since that night and still are.
Here's the article:
http://www.injury-lawyer-florida.com/2009/01/fort_myers_man_sentenced_to_15.html
