Donald’s Grief and the Collision
The Sun is Also a StarDonald’s unresolved grief and drinking cause the car collision that injures Jeremy and unexpectedly alters several lives.
increasing
Bearing strength in each event
decreasing
A Daughter Lost

Grief Takes Hold
A Fatal Accident
Donald’s daughter is killed by a driver who was texting.
Life Contracts
The loss damages his marriage, sleep, appetite, and ability to remain sober.
Numbers Without Comfort

An Actuary’s Habit
Pricing Loss
Donald once used actuarial tables to assign financial value to unexpected deaths and accidents.
Meaningless Calculation
After his daughter dies, no number can measure the loss or restore the future he imagined.
Natasha in the Crosswalk

Another Near Tragedy
The Red Light Run
Driving while distressed, Donald nearly strikes Natasha as she crosses the street.
Daniel Intervenes
Daniel pulls her backward, preventing the collision from becoming another death in Donald’s life.
Jeremy Is Struck

The Collision Continues
A Lawyer Hit
Donald’s car hits Jeremy Fitzgerald at low speed, leaving him bruised but alive.
A Day Redirected
The accident occupies Jeremy and becomes part of the chain that prevents him from seeing the judge.
An Unwanted Lesson

Futures Can Vanish
A Realization
Donald understands that a future can be destroyed in a moment and that no price can make loss acceptable.
Consequences Beyond Him
His grief-driven driving affects Natasha and Jeremy, linking private pain to public consequences.
two years before the day Natasha is nearly hit
the years following his daughter’s death
midmorning, outside a Manhattan record store
about an hour before Natasha arrives at Fitzgerald’s office
after the two collisions, as Donald remains in his car