You hear those stories about people who manage to walk away from accidents in which there is nothing left of the vehicle but some twisted metal. And you think, "Huh, that's impressive." That thought multiples ten-fold when it happens to someone you know.

This very thing happened to Maryam yesterday, and I just got off the phone with her. She spent last night in the hospital and will be there tonight, but she should be released tomorrow. I heard about the accident last night, but until I talked to her directly, I didn't want to alarm people and invade her privacy. She said that she wanted to be sure some people knew, and she also wanted to let people know that she's all right. Maryam sounded like she was in good spirits when I talked to her, and her sense of humor is unharmed. So, that said, I'll tell you what I know about the accident.

Around 6 p.m. last night, Maryam went to pick her dad up at work. They live in an area consisting of many trees, narrow, winding roads, mountains, and little traffic. It's not too far from the nearest town, though, and that's where her dad works. Many of the accident details will probably never be known, but something caused Maryam to swerve off the road, where the car crashed into a tree and burst into flames. She was trapped in the car, but apparently managed to climb out the window and walk away.

The first person to come along happened to be a nurse, and the next person was an EMT (Emergency Medical Technician -- they are certified in rescue assistance). She was taken to the hospital and admitted with a concussion, some scrapes and cuts, and a nasty bruise on her thigh. She remembered nothing of the accident, and didn't even know her own birthday. As they were transporting her to the hospital, they put her on a board with her head and neck stabilized, as most patients are treated. Apparently, Maryam kept saying the board was very hard and that she wanted a pillow. She laughed when she said to me, "They said I was asking for a pillow about every five seconds."

As is standard, authorities tested her for drugs and alcohol, and her dad (who ought to be a professional joker) told them, "If she's not under the influence of drugs, that will be the first time since she was 13." (NOTE: It was a joke; Maryam passed their tests with flying colors. In fact, we laughed aloud at the idea of her being on drugs.) She asked them to tell Matthew about the accident, but that was about all for last night.

They still don't know the details of the accident, but Maryam said she dreamed last night about a car coming toward her, and she swerved out of the way. No skid marks were found, but one possibility is that another vehicle coming toward her took a curve too wide, and she swerved to avoid hitting the other vehicle. Maryam's memory is back now, but she still has no memory of the accident, or of climbing out of the car. But she certainly knows when the RinkUnion is, and we laughed about how she could show off her scars. (We joked about this forum post, and how we could talk about Dave's car and it being Darien's fault.) She has a couple of scrapes on her head, and her arm is bandaged up, but the concussion seems to be gone now. I asked if her hair was still all there, and she was happy to report that it's intact. Maryam will most likely be home tomorrow, but if you'd like to send her get well messages, send them to ayako@rinkworks.com.

I saved this part for the end, just because I'm still trying to grasp it. Maryam walked away from a burning car, and all that is left is the twisted frame. The spare tire is still intact, but the other four tires melted. There was enough of the car left to merit a tow truck, but her dad has no idea how she climbed out. He went back to the accident scene and found the moonroof of the car, lying at the foot of the tree she hit. The tree is burnt nearly to the top.