Reoccuring Trauma

Dreams of car crashes and peas.

Photo by Michael Jin on Unsplash

When I was a teenager and through to my 20s, I had a reoccurring nightmare about being in a car accident as a child. I remember it still, in my 40s.

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We’re in a black car — me and my sister in the back. My dad driving and my nan in the passenger seat. We’re at the Beake Ave/Parkgate Rd crossroads between my house and my school.

It’s a busy crossroads. There are shops to the north and two primary schools on either side. I went to the regular school. The other school was a Catholic school, I walked past it every day to get to my school. They wore uniforms and would go on to go to the Cardinal school. I was destined for President Kennedy Secondary. I wanted to go to the Blue coat school with Amanda Wright, but we couldn’t afford it. After all, President Kennedy was actually close than my primary school. Instead of crossing the busy intersection, I would turn left and head up the hill.

I don’t know where we were going, my dad, nan, sister and I. I don’t remember that. Not to school, we always walked, even if we were late (and we…