The Ride Home

The Ride Home

Did you ever have to give someone bad news and you just keep putting it off?  That's not a good procedure because it often blows up.

When I was in high school, I was away from home.  My cousin was in the group with me.  My mom called me the morning we were preparing to leave and said that my cousin's family had had a major fire the night before.  She asked me to tell my cousin so that she was prepared for the disaster when she got home.

I tried to tell her.  I didn't know the words.  I couldn't find the moment.  I was scared.  The ride home seemed so long because I had this horrible secret.  It seemed so short because I knew she was soon going to find out.

As we pulled into her driveway, she remarked, "I wonder why there are so many cars here?"

"Well," I said taking a deep breath, "There was a fire in your house last night and they are here to help clean up."

It wasn't pretty.  She looked at me with horror and disbelief.  As we walked into her burned out kitchen and living room, she burst into tears.

I knew she wasn't mad at me and was upset because of the fire, but for a long time I felt very guilty.  Maybe by telling her earlier, I could have alleviated her pain.  Probably not, but it has helped me think about how to prepare and tell people bad news when I have to.