yesterday, i ventured out to meet with my focused writers group, Life Sentence. driving along my girl mentioned a couple hawks circling above. we usually talk and appreciate birds, trees, whatever happens to be along our nature lined roads.
i had the cruise control set on sixty. i live in the country, so we were on a winding farm road (which i can usually handle no problem).
at the final, large sweeping turn, my girl mentions the hawks, and i turn to look at them. i look back and we are on the grass going down the enbankment. it was surreal.
"we're off the road, Renee." i said relatively calm.
i tapped the break gently to turn off the cruise control (going sixty mph into a ditch is not a good thing). then, i turned the wheel so we were no longer headed toward the fence holding cows at bay, and were driving along the ditch. as the car leveled out, i turned the wheel again, we're still traveling about 45 mph, perhaps 50, and the car started ascending the hill. i looked over my shoulder to make sure we weren't going to hit anyone who was taking the turn after us, and pulled right back onto the road."
"whew. we're okay bug, we'd better pray for travelling mercies." i said, still calm.
"shhh. i'm praying." renee doesn't like to be interrupted when she prays silently (neither does her dad).
"we went off the road bug. i'm glad the car is okay. i'm glad we're okay." i said, still shocked.
we arrived at our friend's house a half-hour early and i apologized for my bad manners, explaining the situation.
all day, i drove wide-eyed and cautious, hoping i would not end up off the road again. perhaps the most troubling thing about it was, my reaction time was severly delayed. i didn't even realize i was driving off the road. i didn't ever react either. except for a bit of gratitude that we emerged unscathed.
we arrived home and told danny what happened. he was glad i didn't hit the breaks. he said, "that is where most people get into trouble."
i still don't really understand why things happen the way they do, but an old amy grant song has been going through my head since it happened. the lyrics don't really apply but the message does:
God only knows the times my life was threatened just today / a reckless car ran out of gas / before it ran my way/ near misses all around me / accidents unknown / i'll never see with human eyes / the hands that lead me home/but i know they're all around me / all day and through the night / when the enemy is closing in / i know sometimes they fight / to keep my feet from falling, i'll never turn away / if you're asking what's protecting me / then you're gonna hear me say, 'got angels watchin' over me / every move i make / angels watchin' over me / every step i take/ angels watchin' over me'
i am grateful for the hand of God upon my life, upon my child's life yesterday especially. i have to drive every day next week. i trust the Hand of God upon my life.
now if i could just shake this cold...
2 comments:
I was thinking about this post of yours, Suz, and the way you interpreted this near collision of yours.
You choose to see it as a sign of God's protection in your life. That's how I would have seen it too. But I was thinking of people I've known who would have been hysterical and terribly upset by what could have happened, how close a brush with death they had, and the thought of all the terrible things that could have happened overwhelms them so they are almost as emotional distraught as if the bad thing had in fact happened.
Odd, eh?
Deborah
so many bad things have happened in my life that if i saw them only as defeat or near failure or calculated all that "could have" happened, i'd go mad. or give up. or worse, lose hope. God doesn't purpose the chaos of my life, but He certainly uses it. and He loves to share His perspective, provided i take the time to ask. blessings.
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