Thankful for their lives

Mother's Day 2009 will be a day I will never forget. We had not been home from lunch after church long when the phone rang. The voice on the other side was telling me my parents had been in a bad car wreck. I was hearing the words but my mind was racing and fear had taken over. What in the world was happening and why had my day all of a sudden been turned upside down? We waited around the house for Chip's parents to get there from the lake to get Karlee and Adam, Chip, and I hit the road.

My parents were headed to Cape Canaveral to see the shuttle launch on Monday. This was one item on my dad's Bucket List (a must see movie by the way). They had just stopped at a rest area and changed drivers. My mom has pulled the camper before so it was no big deal. My dad laid his seat back to rest his eyes for the next 90 miles. He opened his eyes to a swaying truck and a panicked wife. My mom had changed lanes and the camper started swaying so bad that she couldn't control it. My dad sat up to see the back end of the camper at his passenger window and knew it was all over. The camper swung them around facing the traffic that was behind them and flipped them, witnesses say, 5 times off the right side of the interstate. Thank the good Lord above they didn't hit another car, guard rails, signs, or anything. They flipped into wide open grass. God's angels had to be with them in that truck. Other angels were driving north bound and saw the entire thing happen. It just so happened that an ambulance was on the north bound lane and were at my parent's side instantly when the truck stopped rolling.

My parents walked away from an accident that should have been deadly. Had my dad not been reclined in his seat, it would have killed him instantly. The passenger side of the truck was caved in just above him where his head would have normally been. They were wearing their seat belts, thank goodness because both driver and passenger windows were rolled down. We arrived at the hospital around 7:45 and my fears were calmed by seeing my parents and getting to touch and talk to them. My dad could not have surgery that day on his hand because of the head injuries. So, after talking with Dr. Frazier Jones in Opelika, it was decided we could bring them home for surgery here. We spent the night Sunday and went to see what we could salvage from the truck and camper early Monday morning. They were fully packed for a 7 day trip so you can only imagine the stuff they had packed away in the truck and camper. My mom always over packs so there were lots of clothes to gather up. We rented a U-Haul and saved everything we could. My dad was worried about his fishing gear and tools that he has collected over the past years the most. He was definitely back to himself Monday morning worried about his fishing tackle and poles!

My dad is in surgery now to have pins put in a broken thumb and middle finger. He has a really bad soft tissue bruise and cuts on his head and left ear. My mom has a fractured left elbow and bruised right side of the face and ear. These are minor wounds compared to what it could have been. On this Mother's Day, I could have lost both my parents in the blink of an eye. We take so many things for granted. If you haven't told the people you love that you love them, then do it now. Time is so precious and the unsaid words you feel are doing no good bottled up inside of you. I thank God for my parents lives because I know without His help, we would have lost them on Sunday.