Jazub -- I cried a little. Sad story, with a prolific ending.
I wouldn't necessarily say 'Saved my life', but it certainly could have taken a diffent direction.
Midway through highschool, we had just left academia behind in favor of the summer. We hadn't had many warm summer around that time, but this one was killing me. A friend of mine had just received his license (days and a couple hours), and like all teens, you just want to drive. After meeting with a few friends for dinner and what-not, we had decided to take the long way around and just enjoy the weather. Where we were, there was a country road notorious for a little 'hump' at the top of the hill.
"You know that stomach feeling...where your stomach drops when you go over some bumps?". Naturally I knew what he was speaking of, but didn't quite understand the context.
All of a sudden, he had pushed the pedal to the floor, heading for this hump. Unfortunately this was not just a hump...it was a hill that had an extremely steep drop off on the other side. Before he even hit the gas we were already at 70km. The last thing I remember seeing was '100'.
As expected at speed - and with the bump - he launched us off the hill.
It's amazing how fast the adrenaline dump kicks in. Auditory exclusion came into play the instant my brain recognized what was going on. No sound. Whatsoever. Finally the wheels came to ground, but he was already trying to compensate for contact, jerking the steering wheel, things took another turn. Banking hard left, we slammed into the side of a driveway that had been elevated over a ditch, flipping us over, time after time, after time. After 4 rolls we had landed on our roof, and I still hadn't heard a thing.
Unfortunately I had been holding onto the 'oh shit bar', and tore out most of the ligiments, and had destroyed the joint in my right shoulder. I knew I was somewhat okay, but my friend didn't seem much for words. "Phil! Phil!", ears ringing, I could hear myself yelling out his name. "Phil!". He finally spoke up.
Upsidedown, our necks were cocked to the side, resting on what was left of the collapsed roof. Honestly, I would buy a Subaru after that. You always hear about crash test, but this was something else. As a kid, Hollywood had foolishly taught us that all cars would explode, so our priority at that time as getting out of the car. We didn't know how long it would take for someone to get there - if they even would - because we were somewhat in the boons. I went to push the button on the seatbelt, but it wouldn't budge. My friend tried his, but no such luck. Looking back, I'm sure we just needed to release some of our weight, but I think our minds were elsewhere.
Growing up on islands and in the country, I had always carried a knife. Oddly enough, I had been raised by a single mother who produced fashion shows, but she insisted. She was raised by a horse trainer, so at least something stuck. I had grown up with a Buck lock back, but had recently switched to a Benchmade. One thing is for sure...I sucked at left handed openings with the shakes. Slowly I began to saw at his seatbelt - right by the lock - and taking care to cut away from him. As he slowly came free, he took the knife and cut me out. When I fell, that was the first time I felt the pain. I yelped, I cursed, and I'm sure I even cried a little, as much as I wouldn't want to admit.
As if the seatbelts weren't enough, the doors wouldn't budge. Thankfully, all the hard work had been done on the windows, but they still needed a little encouragement. It wasn't until I put foot to window that I realized I was missing a shoe. It didn't knock my socks off, but the shoe came loose in a crash. I find it pretty funny now, but then it was a different story.
After we got out, my friend went into a mild state of shock. Probably for fear of what his dad would do, but it seemed natural. He laid down, and we elevated...and sat to wait. We both seemed somewhat 'alright', and seconds later a family came running down the driveway that we had hit. They thought their house was hit by lightening, until the saw the headlights in the distance. Soon the police, fire, and EMS arrived, and all was somewhat well. The thing that gives me the biggest kick, is that my friend was alright until he tried to get into the ambulance, in which time he smashed his head on the top of the doorframe and needed to get stitched up. And me...well, my competetive sports days were gone, but a few years later my shoulder made it back to about 90%.
Could we have died without the knife that day? Probably not. Could the circumstances been different? Yup. I'm just thankful that everyone was alright, but I can tell you one thing: aside from vacation, I haven't left the house without a knife since. I live with the 'rather have it and not need it...' process, because you just never know. Stay safe!
