For a full 20 seconds this morning I believed I’d either killed or seriously harmed another human being.

I thought I’d hit a motorcyclist. He got up, unhurt, and let me babble my panicked sorries at him.

It wasn’t until after a bystander informed me of what had actually happened that I accepted I hadn’t caused the crash and the biker was very probably hoping I’d take the blame and he’d get his bike fixed for free.

I feel tearful tonight because knowing in your bones that you’ve harmed someone is a tough trip to take. Knowing, later, that people are capable of purposely causing you that painful, fearful guilt is an even harder thought to process.

It’s not just my job to tell people about road safety. It’s a fact of life that we’re not where we should be with it and one second’s carelessness from you or a stranger can kill someone who is precious – and it happens all the time. Every minute of every day, we’re all rushing, angry, distracted.

And even if you’re doing everything right, that bad thing can still happen to you. It’s a very difficult thing to accept.