The 35-year-old Tatra di Liberto from the Australian city of Lowood has a son, Exton, who will soon be two years old. Tatra is often criticized by friends and family for still pushing Exton in her car backwards, even though by Australian standards, a child seat can be rotated from six months.
I was told that he was too old to ride backward, and that he would be bored.
On August 23, Tatra left Axton with her mother, Bronwyn, who loves to spend weekends with her grandson. And, naturally, the relatives began to argue about how to transport the child in the car.
I dropped him off at their house Friday afternoon and my mom and I had a long discussion about the back seat as they were about to put Exton in their car. Mom suggested just turning it forward, but I refused and helped her adjust the seat.
And Tatra very well guessed that Exton needed extra security because the next day her mother had an accident.
In the car, in addition to Bronwyn, there was Tatra’s 21-year-old brother Bailey and little Exton.
Bailey called me at five in the evening and said that they had an accident. I felt nausea in my stomach. They did not have time to drive off from the house and two miles, as it happened. They were just going to have dinner somewhere.
Bronwyn had a tendon torn from a bone in her knee as a result of the collision, and Bailey suffered a neck injury and bruising from a seatbelt.
Luckily, Exton was fine. Paramedics, police and firefighters told my mom that the rear-facing child seat saved his life. Without it, he could have suffered an internal decapitation, neck injuries, or a broken spine. He could be killed or paralyzed for life.
Now Tatra is calling for Australian laws to be changed to allow children to stay longer in rear-facing seats, preferably up to two years, as this, she believes, will save many lives.
And despite the fact that Exton remained unharmed, Tatra suspects that the incident left the child psychologically traumatized.
He cries every time I put him in a child seat, although he has never done this before. When I think about how easily we could have lost him, I start to cry. I’m so grateful that he’s still with us. It could have been much more tragic.
