Why I can’t stop thinking about last Wednesday

Some worry about flying. Some worry about visiting countries prone to earthquakes. Some worry about crowded places. But few worry about walking around South West London with children by their side.

On Wednesday I started wondering why. It appeared as if Big Girl, Baby Boy and I were seconds away from being hit by a pile of bricks that came flying down from the first floor of a building and landed right in front of us on the pavement.

We were passing a building site in Fulham on the way to nursery, and we had paused for a second under the scaffolding, as Big Girl was complaining that she wanted me to pull her scooter in addition to pushing Baby Boy’s buggy and carrying a large bag of donations to the Save the Children shop by Parsons Green.

I had stopped to explain that I simply didn’t have more hands available when lots of bricks landed right in front of us on the pavement, and I realised pausing at that moment in time had saved both my kids and myself.

It didn’t take long before my eyes welled up with tears and I could feel myself shaking. Several women who had watched the episode from further down the street asked me if I was ok, with some commenting it was our day and that it wasn’t our turn yet.

The very kind staff at the school next to where it happened led us into their schoolyard and gave us water and biscuits, while making calls to ensure the building site would be inspected and made safe for pedestrians.

For the rest of the day, I remained in shock and burst into tears several times when thinking about the event or running into friends.

Although I felt extremely lucky we had all escaped without any scratches, it also made me feel completely powerless. I feel I’m taking so many precautions to ensure the children are safe at all times, but I’ve taken it as a given that we’re safe on a pavement in a relatively quiet Fulham street.

Tags: Accident, Building site, Fulham, School run, Scooter