This is life. This is life turning on a dime.

Anjeanette Perkins is a good friend of mine. She's smart, she's funny, she's challenging, she's such a caring person that a couple years ago she gave her dad a kidney, she's moving to Indianapolis to go to seminary.

We wanted to get together as much as possible this last week since she's leaving Wednesday, so Friday we all (Marv too) went to see Hairspray. It got done about 9:15 so we decided to get together at our house and play some Farkel or something.

As Anj pulled up to the curb in front of our house, John Lott pulled up behind her. While we were laughing in the darkness of the movie theater, Anjeanette's mom had been trying to get ahold of her.

Anjeanette's father, Jerome, his partner, Peg, Peg's nephew, and a friend of Peg's, Deb, had all been eating at a sidewalk cafe in Minneapolis in the company of 20-some other people, when a woman in a Ford Ranger pickup drove into the crowd at 30 mph. She may have suffered some sort of medical episode so have caused that. We're not sure yet. Thirteen people were injured, Jerome critically. People standing nearby had to take the truck off him. His heart stopped at the scene but he was revived by the EMTs.

When Anj called her mom (her mom and dad are divorced), all she knew was that he was badly hurt and in surgery. John and Janet drove Anj and her car to the cities, getting there at 2am. They left directly from our house because she's been living in Zearing in a borrowed storefront since she sold her house and there was no time to go there first. I gave her something to sleep in and a toothbrush and toothpaste and she gave me her keys so we could feed her cat.

Yesterday morning we drove to her place, fed the cat, packed a suitcase full of her clothes and other things she needed, and headed for Minneapolis. I had been talking to her, intermittently, and knew that things weren't going well.

Although he suffered some internal injuries the real damage was massive brain injury. His pupils were non-responsive and he hadn't improved in any way since he had been admitted. The family talked to a representative of an organ donation service, and authorized donation. They knew he would want that since he was the recipient of a kidney. Anjeanette is hoping that her kidney can live on, helping someone else to live. Last night at 7:00, there was to be a final test to determine brain function. The doctors held out no hope for a positive outcome. All his friends and family who needed to be there would have gotten there last night by midnight. I believe the plan was to release him from life support some time this morning. I haven't talked to Anjeanette yet today to see if there was any change.

Peg had a gash on her arm requiring 40-some stitches. Her nephew had a slight concussion. Her friend, Deb, escaped visible injury. Other persons on the scene were treated and released.

Hug your loved ones. Hold them dear. Life is too full of turns.