It is Murphy's Law that states "If anything can wrong it will go wrong," but is this true if you are expecting it? Is it possible because of our train of thought we can be creating a tragic scenario? Or is it possible that thinking of the worst prepares for the catastrophic?
I am in a sitting position with my sister laying her head in my lap resting while I then arch my waist to rest my head on her shoulder. She is not feeling well. She is trying to fight a bug and her throat is piercing with sharp pain. It is hypothesized that she is coming down with strep throat. Hopefully it is just sinuses.
Starting towards our destination with a full night of driving into a colder climate and our trip really just beginning I am praying constantly over my sister. I believe in the power of prayer. I have been reading Acts as the disciples perform great miracles of healing. If the Holy Spirit can heal then it should certainly be able to now.
As I am praying over my sister my mind wonders in and out of the prayer for her. I envision the car loosing control and flipping. Because of the way my body is positioned and the way the car rolls my legs become twisted at the knees creating such bad breaks and tears that it is necessary to amputate both legs from the knee down. I require prosthesis and a orthopedic doctor designs this beautiful technology for me to continue a normal lifestyle, like fitting into my kayak so I can control my boat with my the remainder of my knee.
It suddenly occurs to me I should also be praying for us in the car so that an accident like my imagination has created will not occur. Not only am I praying for my sister's quick healing I also pray my cousin, my cousin's friend, my sister, and I will arrive near Jackson Hole, WY safely for a spring break of skiing.
How the party was formed is a bit of chance. How the trip was arranged was a bit of insanity. My cousin was desperate for a road trip out West for skiing. I was free for spring break so a road trip out West seemed like a fun adventure. Cousin Burton's friend's previous plans fell through making him available for the journey. Then my sister who had been in direr need of a vacation from work apprehensively accepted the offer to join us. I say apprehensively because we are going to be driving over 3200 miles in wintry conditions through the Rockies in a 1990 900 Saab with probably more than 200k miles on the car (the odometer is broken). After weeks of my sister going back and forth about the idea she finally conceded to the invitation.
We have prayed and we are in agreement. It is not so much the destination that is important, it is the journey that makes the event memorable. I am taking this journey with the expectation we all have the right ingredients for problems to occur, but there is growth there. This is where lessons are learned and stories are told of the memories.
At about 8:30 nearly half way across Nebraska we pull over for dinner at Arby's. When we left Kansas City the temperature was at least in the high 60s. Now the temperatures are dropping towards a freezing point. As we leave the restaurant I decide to make a short cut crossing to another adjoining sidewalk by stepping on a landscape rock. The rock is iced over. With little traction on my sneakers I immediately slip off landing on my left hip and hand to take the impact. In my other hand I have ahold of a coffee cup. I have managed not to drop it, but some of the contents spills on my jacket. I return inside to gather some napkins to wipe away the splatters. The manager notices my actions and I explain what just occurred. At first she is confused why I slipped because she had salted the sidewalks. I correct my statement that I actually slipped outside of the sidewalk. She replies sympathetically and wishes me a safe drive and I return to my departing party.
About an hour and half later I am startled from my prayer over my sister by the car swerving. Burton who is driving explains, "Hold on!" Just when I think he is about to gain control of the car we start spinning to the right passing a semi on a bridge. It occurs to me we could spin, smash into the cement wall or run underneath the tracker trailer. However, we pass the truck instead. We stop the spin and loose our momentum, but we are facing east, the direction we came from. The semi-truck we just passed is now moving towards us because we have landed in its path. My sister and I are in the back seat where we have been covered by the darkness of night. Now it is becoming brighter. I grab my sister tighter awaiting impact as the headlights flood the car with white. Right before impact I squeeze my eyes shut never expecting to see light again.
I still feel movement with no pain. The car is pushed to the median, as the truck keeps rushing by. I open my eyes and turn my head to watch the trucker in expectation that he might crash as well, but I loose vision of him as passes behind another accident that happened moments before ours. As I am checking myself and asking my sister if she is well I look around. The car is now facing south in the median, but to our right not more that 50 feet away is another 18 wheeler smashed perpendicular into a very demolished SUV.
We all get out of the car, in panic. Burton is eager to check the condition of his car leaving me to force my way out of his two door car on my own. His car miraculously looks well considering the impact, except his headlights no longer exist. My attention is again drawn to the semi and the white SUV. The driver of the truck asks if we are okay. We all nod. The SUV looks empty of people and completely collapsed. I turn back to Burton and he explains something about the radiator being busted. Tire screeches turn my head back to the interstate. Debris is scattered on the road illuminated by on coming traffic that is trying to avoid it and the semi that is blocking left lane. They too make the mistake of applying brakes and fishtailing. A few cars stop to see if anyone is injured I see a bumper laying in the road. Thinking it is Burton's I run out after it. However, once I have obtained it I realize it is indeed not the Saab's. As I return to the group three Mexican women crying all carrying young children appear from the dark walking from the direction of the bridge and I assume they must be the SUV's passengers. As more traffic passes, it becomes apparent everyone in the median is in a death trap if another vehicle looses control. Burton is able to start his car and drive it up closer to the bridge. Everyone else stays closer to the west-ward bound side watching the cars and 18 -wheelers barley avoid collisions. Eventually, someone walks to the beginning of the bridge with flares to warn of the upcoming accident with the hope of slowing vehicles. Another man who is EMT certified stops to check the condition of the accident. He also calls 911 and requests a salt truck treat the roads.
Burton makes several phone calls to his father. I call my mother to explain the situation and ask for prayer. Eventually, the tow truck picks us up and the family that was hit. With the SUV on the flat bed truck it became apparent how severe the accident was. With the vehicle completely collapsed I failed to understand how anyone could survive the accident. Asking the men near by, they replied the family had not been in the vehicle at the time of impact, then I understood what had occurred.
My guess is since the family was Mexican they probably had no idea how to drive on ice. When they drove on the bridge they for whatever reason lost control. Then seeing a large semi-truck coming in their direction they panicked not bothering to move their SUV and instead abandon it. The truck having little time to react had no way to avoid vehicle slamming directly into its side to be pushed towards the median. Then Burton who at the time was about to pass another semi a few moments later saw his lane obstructed by the upcoming truck applied his brakes probably as he was driving over black ice. Just when he was about to gain control he went over the bridge that was extra icy spinning him just in time to be struck by the truck he had planned to pass.
Two miracles occurred that night. That we did not hit the truck or the wall as we made a 180 and that we did not get pushed into the previous accident of the semi- and the SUV. Burton may not think so considering the condition of his car, but the whole situation could have been much worse. The tow truck driver was extremely nice to us making hotel arrangements as we drove and the hotel owner offered us a good rate.
No one wants to have an accident, particularly on vacation. It was an unfortunate event, but it also resolved itself extremely well. We are able to rent a car and keep going on our adventure meeting some very kind people along the way. So who says prayer does not work? Anything is possible and we must be willing to be flexible and open to other possibilities.
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