A Curve In The Road

Did you ever notice how, every once in a while, life throws an unexpected curve at us? You know, you are just driving along and BAM, there it is!

Well, we had one of those experiences yesterday. Dawn and I got home a little after 11:00pm from visiting her parents (who live an hour away from us), just started settling in for the evening - you know, take care of the dog, brush the teeth, and so on - when the phone starts ringing.

Now just a little background on the day. Jackie is out with a friend. Adam is in Pittsburgh at a Red concert (Red is a hot new band with three members who are good friends of ours). Dawn's mother is suffering from degenerating health diseases, and we have three aging grandmothers. So a call after eleven really messes with the mind! Dawn reluctantly answered the phone with so many possibilities running through her mind. I was wondering if Jackie was in trouble, or if Dawn's mother suddenly took a turn for the worse, or maybe it was Adam in trouble.

Dawn began pacing, then headed for the stairs. I could tell by the pace of the conversation that there was trouble - it was Adam... he was okay... "Mom, everyone is okay, but I don't think the car is gonna be drivable anymore."

Now the mind goes into high gear and begins covering all the bases. What happened? How did it happen? How is the other driver? Did you call 911? Etc., etc., etc.!!!!

We find out they are about an hour and a half south of our house on the highway, and yes everyone is okay. The other car is in the median and the police are on the way. "Don't worry, I am on my way. I will be there as soon as I can! Hang tight and call me on the cell if anything changes."

Dawn starts praying and thanking God for, once again, watching over our children and their friends.
I jump in the truck and head down the road. I thank the Lord over and over for keeping them safe - after all when traveling down the road at 11:00pm going 65mph and getting run off the highway by another vehicle into a guiderail [I have a friend who works at PennDOT who emphatically pointed out that they are NOT called guardrails - go figure] anyway - when you hit the guiderail at that point and spin 180 degrees, hit the guiderail again, spin another 180 degrees and end up in the middle of the highway with four people in the car and the other car doing the same... you kind of expect more to happen than a couple of bumps and bruises. Well, literally, there were three bruises - Adam bruised a toe, Patrick and Christine one ear each (from bouncing off of their side windows) and Matt - who happened to be driving planned it just right and ended up without a mark! [I know, Matt, I know - this was certainly unplanned!]

One never plans for something like this, it just happens. It is a curve in the road that we cannot see around. What is just around the bend is out of sight for us. We don't know what is there. We assume the road is clear. We slow to ensure that we can negotiate whatever might be there, but in the end we simply cannot see the whole picture. As it happened, on this curve, Matt was rolling along at the speed limit of 65mph. The other driver was upset and traveling in the passing lane - much faster than Matt I might add - when she received a phone call. As she began looking for her cell phone in the dark her attention was drawn away from the road and she failed to negotiate the curve in the road just as she was passing the kids [haha, kids, they are all in their 20's and 30's!]. Matt said it was like a perfect police maneuver, she pushed their front end right into the guiderail and the rest is history!

So beyond the obvious thoughts of safety, what could we possibly be thankful for? Well, for various reasons the kids asked to borrow our car for the trip which proved to be extremely safe - much safer than any of their much smaller cars. Christine had an opportunity to pray with and try to console the other driver - a very different experience than most drivers would have after pushing another vehicle into a guiderail. Another blessing is that we have a couple other cars to rely on while this is straightened out - each of the kids are depending on one vehicle each. Perhaps one of the biggest blessings is that some basic safety practices were reinforced - WEAR YOUR SEAT BELTS AND DON'T BE DISTRACTED FROM THE ROAD BY YOUR CELL PHONE!

On the way home, as we all talked about the evening then moved beyond the shock of it all we had opportunity to laugh at Adam and Matt's comedy routine [these guys are really funny when you get them together]. As I was pondering Adam's bruised toe, the memory of playing, "This Piggy Went to Market," with his toes when he was just a tiny little guy and experiencing the joy of his inevitable laugh as the last little piggy went, "weeee, all the way home!" welled up in my heart and I was truly thankful that the memories we will make together will continue.

There will come a day when we will rejoice as we enter into The Kingdom, but this day is not Adam's or the kids. Of course, I couldn't let the moment pass without a small jibe, "Adam, the angels in heaven are rejoicing because you did not end up "going home" tonight to bother them!" Haha... just kiddin' ya Adam, just kiddin'!

Jackie's comment to her brother... "What? You wrecked my car? Thanks a lot Adam!" Of course, she was just having some fun with her brother... or was she?!

Stay tuned Jackie, we may have found something for you!