My Life Totally Changed at age Sixteen

My Life Totally Changed at age Sixteen

October 31,  2013

A good day can go bad in a matter of seconds

In the winter of 1956, I lived a day that I would like to take back. I’m sure that almost everyone has a day in their lives that they would like to start over and maybe do some things differently. I had that day and you can’t take it back. When the day is over, you have to live with the consequences of it for your entire life.

My day started out great. It was a warm, winter day, not a cloud in the sky. It was a Saturday, a day out of school. My family lived on a farm and we lived a very primitive life compared to life now days. This particular morning was filled with the normal chores. Feeding the animals, milking cows, and etc. The main job on my agenda was to gather wood to renew the supply for our wood stoves used for cooking and heating our home. My father had found employment in Colorado and I had the responsibility of taking care of the needs of our family. Our primary need that day was to get wood. I prepared by harnessing the horses used to pull the dry trees from the hilltop to our wood storage area.

That day I decided to take my gun with me, thinking I might find a rabbit to help with the evening meal. My father had taught me well on the importance of safety and responsibility of handling a gun. At Christmas time a few days earlier, he had given me the back sights for my 22 rifle. We had spent some time sighting it in on Christmas day. For some reason, we had placed a target on the side of our outhouse.

That particular day I checked the outhouse to make sure it wasn’t occupied, and then stepped back, adjusted the rear sight, and then aimed and shot at the target.I immediately detected a movement inside the building. The shock and realization that I had shot someone, nearly destroyed me. I dropped the gun and ran as fast as I could to the outhouse. I opened the door and there lay my sister! My grief was overwhelming! My whole world had fallen in around me. I yelled to my mother for assistance. She came quickly and as terrified as she was at seeing what had happened, she evaluated the situation and decided that we had to get Kathlyn to the hospital as quickly as possible. 

At that time, there were no telephones or ambulances available. The nearest hospital was about 40 miles away. Everything seemed impossible. 

As we carried her to our old 1948 chevrolet, I could see that the bullet had entered her head at the hairline on the left side of her forehead. She was still alive, but unconscious.My uncle arrived and helped get her into the car. My mother sat in the back seat and held Kathlyn’s head in her lap. Uncle Elmo drove and I collapsed in the passenger seat. My grief was unbelievable. 

The warmth of the day had caused the dirt road to become very muddy and in about a mile out, the car got stuck in the mud. Everything was so desperate and after several tries of getting out, I remembered the horses that I had harnessed earlier at the house. I ran all the way home and climbed on one of the horses and ran all the way back to where I had left the car. During my absence, Elmo had managed to free the car from the mud and had left me. I remember standing there in the middle of that muddy road knowing that only God could help me now. I fell to my knees and poured out my heart to my Father in Heaven, begging for His intervention, pleading for the life of my sister.

Today and every day I give gratitude to my kind Heavenly Father who looked down upon me with mercy. He answered the prayers of a very sad and humble young man and made it possible for me to move on. 

My sister has been a joy to me and she has had a good life. My actions that day put her through some hard trials that I have continually sorrowed for but she never complained or condemned me. Her life has been such a blessing to me.

We can choose what we do on a given day but the consequences of our actions are with us always. My advice to you is to be careful. A careless act can be a part of you forever. You can’t take it back.  

Thank you for reading. This is a very personal story to me, but one that forever changed me. It taught me how fragile life is and to be grateful for every moment you have with your loved ones and to always show that love so when their time comes you will never have to wonder if they knew how you felt about them. 

It is my wish that my stories will have a positive effect on those who read them. 

Taylor Thayne