Her child died in a crash. The other driver sued. Now, she finds solace in his story.

Clarification: Details related to the Missouri Supreme Court Case have been updated.

Every June 8, Ozark resident Amanda Thornsberry visits the Hopedale Cemetery with orange and green balloons.

Orange and green were her daughter Makayla's favorite colors.

In 2004, 2-year-old Makayla was killed in a car crash. The driver of the other vehicle sued the driver of Thornsberry’s car for causing him emotional distress — and won after the case reached the Missouri Supreme Court.

NPR podcast Invisibilia recently featured this strange and seminal court case. It helped transform the way the law thinks about emotions, podcast hosts Alix Spiegel and Hanna Rosin explained.

Thornsberry, who is a nurse anesthetist with Mercy Hospital in Springfield, was interviewed for the popular podcast, which explores themes such as psychology and human behavior.

The recent episode asked questions such as: Where do emotions like pain come from? Do people have control and responsibility for their own emotions?

It was difficult, Thornsberry told the News-Leader, revisiting those painful memories more than a decade later. But it also brought her comfort.

Thornsberry said that, through her conversations with the hosts of the podcast, she learned more about Tommy Jarrett, the man who sued her family after Makayla was killed.

"The whole experience has taught me that there is always more to the story than it is at face value. I realize that now."

Thornsberry said she only recently learned of the severity of Jarrett's emotional trauma after the crash.

"I actually teared up when I heard he considered himself to be a murderer," Thornsberry said. "I wouldn't want anyone to feel that way. I do not blame him for my daughter's death at all."

Jarrett, who was a professional trucker from Ohio, was also interviewed for the podcast.

He said on the episode, "I blamed myself because of my inability to control what I had the ability to control, a child lost her life."

Jarrett grappled with guilt and grief for months: "There for a while, I thought I should die."

Jarrett was eventually diagnosed with PTSD, according to the podcast.

Jarrett's lawyers argued successfully in court that Thornsberry's husband at the time had crashed into Jarrett's truck through negligent driving and caused his trauma.

Jarrett settled for $50,000, half of which went to pay attorneys fees, the podcast reported. Thornsberry's insurance covered the costs.

Before the podcast, Thornsberry said, she thought Jarrett was trying to take advantage of the situation.

"When the lawsuit came, we kind of felt like he was saying, 'Your emotions don't matter, I'm the one who had all the trauma from it,'" Thornsberry said.

But Thornsberry told the News-Leader she changed her views on the man after learning more.

"It brought me comfort to realize that even though he didn't know her, he instantly formed an emotional attachment to her. It kind of solidified my belief that people really are good and people really do care about other people," Thornsberry said.

Thornsberry said the podcast hosts visited her home in Ozark one sunny afternoon in February or March.

For six hours they sat in her kitchen and talked about Makayla and the court case.

"We had some tears. There were some laughs," Thornsberry said. "I feel like if I don't talk about my daughter, nobody really knew she was here."

Two-year-old Makayla had bright red hair and a lisp. She was buried in a yellow and purple princess costume — her favorite, Thornsberry said.

"She was so loving and she was such a happy child. I am very thankful I got the opportunity to have her in my life," Thornsberry said.

Thornsberry hopes her story can teach others that pain lessens over time.

"It's always there, but it does lessen and it does get easier to come to terms with every day," Thornsberry said.

Thornsberry has divorced and remarried since the crash. Her daughters Hannah, 13, and Ashley, 11, came with her to place balloons on Makayla's grave Thursday morning.

An audio recording and transcript of the full podcast episode are available online at radio.wosu.org/post/emotions-part-one.