I planned my day before I left the house

Scribbled in my journal and said a short prayer

Laced up my shoes then pounced

I turned left onto the boulevard

I was running in the heat, running hard

What a gift for my heart to beat like that

My legs felt strong

It was my day to run hard and long

I thought about what the Bible means

Thought about my husband, my dog, work, my dreams

The traffic zoomed just a few feet away

How I wanted to do the big loop – over the bridge on the Lafayette

A great run on a pretty day

The sidewalk on the bridge drew me like a magnet

I faced the tractor trailers on that road

Cars and pick-up trucks hauling boats

Dangerous to be there

But I didn’t care

It was exhilarating, being out there

I was approaching the top of the bridge, my head was turned toward the river

I heard a loud explosion, felt my whole body quiver

For just a split second

My conscious mind beckoned

That tractor trailer truck and I met

The top of the bridge was as far as we’d both get

Four hours later they found our bodies in that river below

That monstrous truck was extricated too

That was my last run – wish I’d known

The truck and trucker had also flown

Where was he headed

What will my husband and my dog, my co-workers do

What will that trucker’s needy family do

They said at his funeral that he was so excited to see the Lafayette River too

And to drive that big loop

The lesson here, don’t discard

There’s risk and beauty everywhere

Everybody is running down the boulevard