On a Saturday morning at the end of November 2008, a young family suffered the loss of two sons and the permanent paralysis of another as a result of an automobile accident. Rather than tear the family apart, the tragedy drew them closer and touched the hearts of people in and out of their Catholic community. The boys' father began writing to express the painful emotions he felt and the faith that supported him. These poems and reflections, though heart-wrenching, have been presented in the hope they may bring comfort to other victims of tragedy by witnessing to the healing and transforming power of faith, family and love.
As a tribute to Andrew and Matthew Moeller, partial proceeds from the sale of this book are being donated to help make St. Francis of Assisi School in Vancouver, BC wheelchair accessible.
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The Accident
On Saturday, November 29, 2008 around 9AM, the vehicle holding my wife Maria, my four sons Andrew, Karl, Matthew and Lorenzo, my mother-in-law Rita, her sister Pas and Pas' daughter Marlene was struck from behind by a SUV. My wife had stopped due to mechanical trouble. The SUV, traveling at freeway speed and swerving into the HOV lane, collided full-force into the rear of the minivan carrying my family.
Karl, Andrew and Matthew sat in the rear seats, right-to-left.
Karl suffered a spinal cord injury causing paralysis below the chest, a laceration to the back of his head, a broken femur on one leg and a broken tibia on the other. His paralysis is permanent.
Andrew suffered massive trauma to his head, and irreparable damage to his brain. Andrew's time of death was officially 9PM that night.
Matthew suffered a broken neck. It took thirty minutes to get his heart working again, but the lack of oxygen did irreparable damage to his brain and heart. Matthew's time of death was officially 9PM that night.
Pas, Rita and Lorenzo sat in the middle seats, right-to-left.
Pas suffered a spinal injury, broken pelvis and a head injury. She has been released from hospital.
Rita suffered a spinal injury requiring surgery. She has been released from hospital.
Lorenzo suffered only a minor bruise on one thigh from his car seat seatbelt.
Marlene sat in the passenger seat. She suffered whiplash to her neck.
Maria was driving. She suffered minor impacts to her leg, a facial abrasion and ongoing emotional trauma.
The other driver was uninjured.
I was at work when I received the phone call from my wife in the hospital.
As though the accident, the deaths of Andrew and Matthew, and the injuries to those in the minivan were not enough to deal with, my wife and I also encountered overwhelming media attention during our time of grief. Maria and I soon realized the deaths of Andrew and Matthew, and Karl's paralysis, too, had affected a vast number of people, that number growing each day, beyond the effect on just our little family. It became evident God was working on peoples' hearts, the accident becoming a source of grace to guide the thoughts of many to Him. Observing the workings of grace strengthened my faith and helped me to recognize a greater meaning in the tragedy.
Over the days and months that followed, I found comfort in writing. At times, it seemed a battle waged between faith and emotion, but, the more I wrote, the more I realized the battle had more to do with each needing balanced expression; clinging only to faith denied my humanity, while focusing too much on loss and grief tended toward self-pity and the denial of faith and hope in God's promises.
I wrote (and write still) because I needed to for myself. Gradually, as more people began to read my poems and reflections, they suggested I publish them for others experiencing similar tragedies, or for someone who could possibly find comfort in them. In the pages that follow are the public statements released after the accident and all the poems and reflections written after the deaths of my much-missed sons Andrew and Matthew.
As a tribute to Andrew and Matthew Moeller, partial proceeds from the sale of this book are being donated to help make St. Francis of Assisi School in Vancouver, BC wheelchair accessible.
__________________________
The Accident
On Saturday, November 29, 2008 around 9AM, the vehicle holding my wife Maria, my four sons Andrew, Karl, Matthew and Lorenzo, my mother-in-law Rita, her sister Pas and Pas' daughter Marlene was struck from behind by a SUV. My wife had stopped due to mechanical trouble. The SUV, traveling at freeway speed and swerving into the HOV lane, collided full-force into the rear of the minivan carrying my family.
Karl, Andrew and Matthew sat in the rear seats, right-to-left.
Karl suffered a spinal cord injury causing paralysis below the chest, a laceration to the back of his head, a broken femur on one leg and a broken tibia on the other. His paralysis is permanent.
Andrew suffered massive trauma to his head, and irreparable damage to his brain. Andrew's time of death was officially 9PM that night.
Matthew suffered a broken neck. It took thirty minutes to get his heart working again, but the lack of oxygen did irreparable damage to his brain and heart. Matthew's time of death was officially 9PM that night.
Pas, Rita and Lorenzo sat in the middle seats, right-to-left.
Pas suffered a spinal injury, broken pelvis and a head injury. She has been released from hospital.
Rita suffered a spinal injury requiring surgery. She has been released from hospital.
Lorenzo suffered only a minor bruise on one thigh from his car seat seatbelt.
Marlene sat in the passenger seat. She suffered whiplash to her neck.
Maria was driving. She suffered minor impacts to her leg, a facial abrasion and ongoing emotional trauma.
The other driver was uninjured.
I was at work when I received the phone call from my wife in the hospital.
As though the accident, the deaths of Andrew and Matthew, and the injuries to those in the minivan were not enough to deal with, my wife and I also encountered overwhelming media attention during our time of grief. Maria and I soon realized the deaths of Andrew and Matthew, and Karl's paralysis, too, had affected a vast number of people, that number growing each day, beyond the effect on just our little family. It became evident God was working on peoples' hearts, the accident becoming a source of grace to guide the thoughts of many to Him. Observing the workings of grace strengthened my faith and helped me to recognize a greater meaning in the tragedy.
Over the days and months that followed, I found comfort in writing. At times, it seemed a battle waged between faith and emotion, but, the more I wrote, the more I realized the battle had more to do with each needing balanced expression; clinging only to faith denied my humanity, while focusing too much on loss and grief tended toward self-pity and the denial of faith and hope in God's promises.
I wrote (and write still) because I needed to for myself. Gradually, as more people began to read my poems and reflections, they suggested I publish them for others experiencing similar tragedies, or for someone who could possibly find comfort in them. In the pages that follow are the public statements released after the accident and all the poems and reflections written after the deaths of my much-missed sons Andrew and Matthew.
