As the cheering exploded across the old center of the city the elated feeling within me suddenly turned to one of dread.

Dang!

I cannot follow!

"Hurry, get into the car. We have to leave immediately!"

The dazed look on my ginger friend's face made it obvious that – mentally – she had not left the ceremony, yet.

"The Peace Runners are exiting the city through the pedestrian area," I urgently pointed out our immediate problem. "And I have no idea where they are heading or how to get there!"

Why hadn't anybody told me? Why had I not taken a map? (Please note that this was still a few years before the universal use of mobile phones. At this point, the first Nokia phone had been introduced, but it was much too expensive for poor students like us. And heavy. Hence the nickname: 'brick'.)

Of course, I had thought I would simply accompany the runners to wherever they were heading to. And that Dipavajan would be around the entire time. Well, technically, he was. He was with the group, running. He was just not around me.

"Come on!" I was getting seriously impatient with my friend, who was calmly fiddling with her camera and giving no sign that she had even registered my words.

"Hm."

Yes, it sometimes took a few moments to get back to reality after a Peace Run Ceremony, but at that moment we did not have the luxury to indulge in any blissed out feelings.

"Come on, we have to hurry!"

Very reluctantly, the slightly pudgy girl turned towards me, clapped the protective, black lid back on her expensive camera and trudged behind me to one of the exits leading off the square.

Not the same one that the runners had taken, unfortunately.

As soon as we had taken our seats and fastened our seatbelts (which had taken way longer than I would have preferred, since my friend was not one to be rushed), I chanted "Supreme, Supreme, Supreme", before starting the engine and taking off as fast as the traffic lights would allow.

I had briefly considered doing the usual one-minute protective meditation before starting to drive, but I was far too stressed to be able to sit quietly for that long.

Besides, I argued with myself, we were on the Peace run. Which would surely grant us some special protection.

But now that our car was moving forward, I was fully confronted with the inescapable difficulty of our situation:

I really and truly had no idea where to direct the vehicle to!

And no one to ask.

Since my photographer friend had also not taken the trouble to inquire for directions – after all, she had expected the driver (me!) to be informed about such details – I was truly alone.

Therefore, I did the only thing that I could do: I simply drove.

And drove.

In the approximate direction that I had watched the runners and the torch disappear.

Without much hope.

But with my heart pumping away up in my throat.

At one point and after some going back and forth in the city, we ended up on a fairly empty country-road.

I breathed a bit easier, since this appeared to be a possible way to the next town (called Bruck an der Mur) and ceremony. I recognized it from having been on it each time we had given a meditation class in that town.

"Hey! The Runners! They are here!" My friend suddenly yelled into my ear, causing me to almost swerve.

"What?" I asked, my heart beating fast.

"The runners. Behind us!" She excitedly pointed behind her.

Glancing into the rear mirror, I saw a group of young men in uniform. The police school students that had joined the Peace Run in Graz and who were supposed to carry the torch to Bruck an der Mur.

Relief flooded through me at the sight. I had found them! I had really and truly found them. What a miracle!

But... what now?

As a first measure, I stepped off the accelerator, allowing our vehicle to slow down.

Another glance into the mirror showed three cars on the otherwise empty road, which were approaching from behind.

They were still far away, but I didn't want to take any risks. Therefore, instead of backing up immediately, I decided to only stop our vehicle and wait until those cars had passed.

I did not want to cause any accident, after all.

Or do something possibly endangering or unlawful in plain view of a whole class of future policemen.

As our car had come to a complete halt and I had switched on the warning light, I watched the road ahead of me. To remain aware of any possible traffic heading our way.

Suddenly, I felt a built-up of intense power all around me. As if I had suddenly been placed into a big bubble of energy.

But before I was able to ponder the matter any further, I heard two metallic, clashing sounds, followed by a car zooming past my side window at full speed.

But not the way a car would normally pass another.

Even though everything had happened incredibly fast, it was immediately clear to me that something was very wrong.

Especially, when the car that had just overtaken us made no move to continue on its way forward, but completely stopped moving about two meters before us. On the wrong side of the street.

Startled, I tried to understand what had just happened. Turning around in my seat, I saw two cars behind ours that had also come to a halt. And the group of police trainees rushing towards us.

A moment later, Dipavajan urgently knocked on the passenger window.

"Back up!" he instructed me, sounding stressed.

I hurriedly complied with his request. After I had successfully managed to steer our vehicle past the two unmoving cars behind me and into a small road leading off the main one, I stepped out of the vehicle on slightly shaky legs.

I had just been involved in an accident!

Dipavajan, who had followed us to our parking spot, shook his head in a kind of exasperated amusement.

"An accident. On a practically empty road. Right in front of a whole class of future policemen..."

The men in question were swarming the other three vehicles, taking down notes and securing the road.

"You know," Dipavajan added, his expression turning somber. "That was incredible! The first car probably realized a bit too late that you were not moving, because it stopped rather abruptly. The one behind it had to brake even harder and the third one must not have paid enough attention, because it did not even slow down that much and crashed into the second car, kicking it into the first one. Which, consequently, should have slammed onto yours. Since it was standing right behind you."

Dipavajan's eyes were wide with wonder. "But, in spite of having received a straight hit, it swerved around your car. Like... like running on rail tracks. And – that's really unbelievable – it did not even touch you, did it?"

"No," I confirmed, "it didn't."

"But it should have. It definitely should have."

Wow. If even he, with his technically trained mind thought this had been a kind of a miracle...

Well, to me it had definitely felt like one.

But the incident had made something else very clear: no more driving without the one-minute meditation/praying for protection first, ever!

No matter the circumstances...

Anybody else had similar almost-accident experiences?

As always: I'd love to read from you :) 

And if you liked the story... you know the drill ;)

And I found the picture at Pixabay, its artist is called Rico_Loeb.