Much has happened in our world this past week

– one our aunts went on to be with the Lord so unexpectedly last Thursday that it really threw all of us younger cousins for a loop. And while we know that she’s with the Lord, the loss and grief for her children [and yes, ourselves] is still very real. – I’ll write more on this in the days to come. We had her funeral on Saturday and then went ahead with a planned family baby shower for my brother and his sweet wife – expecting their first baby in August. The circle of life…

Now on to Monday – first the blessings:
We’re blessed that angels were riding in our car with us Monday afternoon…
We’re blessed that auto engineers build cars to crumple…
We’re blessed that the Lord assisted Craig in steering our car safely off the road…
We’re blessed that we had on seatbelts…
We’re blessed that there were no cars in front or beside us…
We’re blessed that a little 18 year old girl had a car with working airbags in the front…
We’re blessed to have good insurance…
We’re blessed to have very little injuries… but mostly
We’re blessed to have our Lord who will never leave us or forsake us –

So is it wrong to grieve a good car lost?
… a car that was reliable and drove so smoothly –
… a car that got terrific gas mileage – 34 to 36 routinely –
… a car that could haul an entire convention booth of scrapbook supplies + two adults comfortably –
… a car that had plenty of room for a family of four –
… a car that for the last two years has practically been my home away from home as I used it to travel more than 30, 000 miles for work –
… a car that, in the end, proved to be safe and trustworthy-

Even now, it seems a little surreal that we’d just been talking about death and insurance and what the boys would need to know should something happen to us when we took an off ramp and started coasting down and around the curve to the red light into Brentwood, TN. We were going about 50 mph when BAM! We felt a jolt from BEHIND and then our left rear tire blew. Just a few weeks ago we’d discussed what a blown tire feels like and what to do when it happens [you know me – I always want to know I’ve DISCUSSED things with my boys so they’ll be prepared should an emergency arise.] So one of my first thoughts was, I don’t remember anyone ever saying it felt like a giant bumper car before the tire blew… I also remember saying so calmly, “Just tap the brake and steer us to the side of the road.” Once we were stopped I realized we’d been hit – HARD.

She had to have been traveling at least 50, maybe 60 mph [maybe more.] And she had alcohol on her breath, admitted she’d been drinking – it was 2:30 in the afternoon… We’re not sure if she just didn’t see us, couldn’t quite get her foot on the brake, or if the brakes really didn’t work as she said [although she steered it to the side of the road and stopped easily enough after she hit us]… but either way, she plowed right into us. She called her dad, but he couldn’t come help her because this was their only car… she was crying to another person on the phone, “I just want my mom!” over and over… [We later found out her address is an aunt’s.] … She appeared to be street savvy and like I’ve shared with others - having supervised child welfare in the past, I feel confident calling it like I see it. But oh, how my heart went out to her – even while I was comprehending that my car was a total loss* - I hurt for her and prayed that the Lord would use us and send others into her life so that this could be a ‘wake-up’ call for her. Will you join us in this prayer for a little 18 year old girl who’s had a hard life? She failed the field sobriety test, but passed the breath test [the officer working the accident said if it’d been given even thirty minutes earlier that she would not have passed – but it took an hour and half for them to determine which jurisdiction we were in… gotta love it…] Since her insurance expired in January she will lose her license for 18 months I think…I'm not real sure about TN laws...

*Our car crumpled – if you look closely you can see the roof is buckled up and the rear windows are bowed out. The doors wouldn’t open. When we finally were able to get the back deck lid open and get our stuff out we could see that the ‘trunk’ area was buckled up like a little earth quake… the right rear bumper was pushed into the tire, the passenger door would open, but not close again… there was NO DAMAGE from the front seats forward …a good little car… and a total loss. We have good insurance and have found a replacement, not another vibe – with gas prices the way they are these little cars are hard to find. We’ll be joining my sister and brother in the Camry Camaraderie. It’s pretty and bit of an upgrade from the vibe, but still should get decent gas mileage. It’s automatic. And for me that’s a big deal since I prefer a five speed manual - so I’ll have bit of transition in that area. I haven’t driven an automatic since my pre- new beetle days [maybe 1996 -?] But I’ll get used to it. And since it’s a little larger I’ll feel a little bit safer as I drive down the interstate worrying about crazed drivers plowing into my rear…