I almost died... the longest minutes of my life

“Every soul shall have taste of death; In the end to Us shall ye be brought back" [Surah Al-'Ankabut, 29:57]

I've never been a statistic. Never had any major injuries,broken bones or stitches. So far, one can say that I've had an uneventful life without emergency scares or life threatening issues. All that was going to change 2 days ago on Monday July 27th 2009. It was supposed to be a normal day, I woke up, prayed, got dressed and my husband left while I was in the bathroom putting my hijab on. He walked in, gave me a kiss and said :" have a good day, I love you, I will call you later", which was our morning routine. I had an appointment at 9:00am and it was 8h30am. I took my purse, put on my heels and ran off to the parking lot. I looked at the clock on the dashboard and it read 8H35. I put the address on the GPS and it couldn't find the street, I then thought I was going to be late for sure, I kept spelling the street differently and realized I needed to put a hyphen on it and the GPS finally found it. At that point,my husband called me to tell me that there was traffic on Bethesda avenue & Bradley Boulevard, apparently a van was found in the middle of the road burnt with the driver inside and the cops and firefighters blocked the street. He wanted to let me know beforehand so I could take an alternate route if needed. I hung up and looked at the clock again, it was 8H40am and the GPS indicated an arrival time of 8H53am, I was happy, I was not going to be late to my appointment. I said "Bismillah Al Malik" ( In the name of God, the King), turned the car on and drove off. At 8h45 am, my cellphone rang again, I thought of ignoring it but looked at the caller id and saw it was my husband calling again, but the phone was on the passenger's eat and I couldn't reach it. For a quick second, I debated whether to pick up or just call him back later but I had spoke to him 5 minutes earlier and assumed that he was calling back to tell me something pertaining to my appointment. So, I decided to pick up, leaned down but couldn't reach it, so I leaned further and in that quick second, in that insignificant detail,the course of my day was changed. The car swerved to the right, hit the curb and flipped over. All I remember is seeing a brown light surrounding the car,then I heard screeching, felt the car in the air and next thing I know, it was upside down, on the roof. The 2 front airbags instantly popped and I could smell gasoline, smoke and heat mixed in the air. I knew I had to think fast, I unbuckled my seat belt and tried opening the door but was not able to. I tried again, and again, but the door was blocked. At that moment, I looked for my phone to call for help but the phone was nowhere to be seen since everything was upside down and smashed in the car. Smoke filled the air and I couldn't see or know what was going to happen. At that point, I felt helpless and gave up. I realized that I was going to die and all the thoughts that were running in my head were: I am 7 months pregnant and I am going to die on a random road, in my car, in my 20's. Did I pray this morning? Yes I prayed, did I know it was my last prayer? No, but I can't change it now, so I will just sit and wait for the angel of death to take my soul. I started looking at the window, terrified, thinking that the angel would appear at that window at any second to take my soul. I don't know why or how I came to that thought, but I really thought the angel would show up at the window and I laid there staring at the window waiting in fear. I wondered how they were going to break the news of my death to my family, husband and friends. I saw their faces, I wondered what they would think. I wondered what would happen to me.... I laid there and I wondered, I wondered......I heard people running and screaming towards my car. Couldn't hear all they were saying, but I heard them say: " we need to get her out, she needs to get out before the car explodes". They tried opening the doors, but couldn't, I could see them panic from where I was, I could see fear in their eyes and that made me even more scared. They were trying to save me but couldn't open the doors, some of them jumped on the car. I felt like I was gonna die right there as the car was going to explode and the Samaritans outside were helpless. I don't know how or when, but they managed to push me out from the roof, they were about 4 and did not give up, they pushed me out to safety, and Ifell on the road. They were strangers, and they saved my life. I don't know their names, couldn't recognize their faces, but they were at the right place at the right time and they did what they thought was right, they risked their lives and were not scared to get me out of a smoking car. Some of them were Hispanic, some of them were Black, some of them were White, they were all wearing a blue uniform of the gas station they were working at. They were strangers, and they saved me. They put me on the other side of the road and a white young man asked me to get in his car to wait for the EMS people, he did not know me, but he offered me his car and cellphone to call my husband. As I sat there and wept, several people slowed down their cars to see what happened, some even parked and came out to satisfy their curiosity. Some were pointing their finger at me, I guess explaining that I was the one driving the car.In less than 5 minutes, the EMS, firefighters and cops arrived at the scene. I was put on a stretcher and transported in the ambulance. They started taking my vitals and I told them I was pregnant. I could see one of the cops taking pictures of the car on the other side. The paramedics called Suburban Hospital and asked them if they could bring me there, but Suburban declined to take me coz I was pregnant and they did not have an Obstetrics unit. They decided to take me to Sibley Hospital then, which was kinda ironic coz I'm supposed to deliver at Sibley. When we arrived at Sibley,I was admitted and checked by 2 ER doctors. then transferred to the Labor and Delivery unit where they monitored the baby on the fetal monitor for 4 hours. I was then transferred to the Sonogram department where an ultrasound was performed and the baby was jumping and moving as if this was the happiest day of her life. They measured my amniotic fluid and transferred me back to L&D for more monitoring. I was later on cleared and discharged with minor injuries on my knee, bruises all over but overall in great shape. I got home, did my wudu and prayed to the God who saved my life. I couldn't believe I was home and praying. I am still sored and my neck and back are hurting but I can't believe I survived this accident. I keep playing it over and over in my head, and it feels like a movie, it doesn't feel real.... People keep telling me that I was lucky, but I know that it wasn't luck,I wasn't supposed to die on July 27th, it wasn't written. Allah gave me a second chance that day. He could've taken my life on that day but He chose not to. He chose to spare me. Maybe He was giving me a warning.I lived the longest minutes of my life, momentarily, my world came to a stand still. It made me realize how fragile this life is and how it could end in a quick second. It made me realize how I needed to prepare for the hereafter. What, if it was my time to die on that day? Was I ready to die? Are you ready to die today? It's never too late, we still have time to repent and return to Him before the Angel of death takes our soul coz then, it will be too late....

And this life of the world is only amusement and play! Verily, the home of the Hereafter, that is the life indeed (the eternal life that will never end), if they but knew. [Surah al-'Ankabut, 29: 64].

O Lord, arouse me to be thankful for Your bounty which You have bestowed on me and my parents, and to do good that shall please You, and admit me by Your mercy, among Your righteous servants.

Surah Naml, v.19