Blessing Counted

Our lawn at noon

"By the grace of God," my husband said when he came into the kitchen about 11:40 this morning, "you're not a widow."

"Huh?" I said.

"I'll show you," he said. "Get in the car."

He drove down our driveway and turned left onto Novelty Road. Then he pointed at our front lawn. Car tracks went way up into it. They weren't there this morning.

Because a friend of ours was stopping by this morning and it was almost time for the mail to come, my husband had decided to wait outside. Since the heavy rain we've had for the last two days was only falling lightly, he thought it would also be a good time to throw a little leftover fertilizer on the edge of our lawn.

He was walking along the edge of our yard and scattering fertilizer when a big truck came from the west and a big black SUV approached from the east. Both were going at fairly fast—the speed limit is 55 mph. The woman driving the SUV swerved to her right, probably because she was afraid the big truck might clip her vehicle.

Where she swerved

When she turned back onto the pavement, her vehicle hydroplaned and came across the road—onto our lawn where my husband was. He started running, but the SUV kept coming—inches behind him. The woman tried to turn, but the vehicle was so out of control that it wouldn't turn—and it came sideways at my husband as he ran. He thought he was dead meat. For all his efforts, he couldn't run fast enough.

"The more I ran," he said, "the more it came out me. I couldn't escape!"

Then he saw the SUV starting to tip, and he thought maybe it would turn over. The driver re-corrected and barely missed him.

Still inches from him, the SUV veered back toward the road.  Once on the pavement and with her SUV finally under control, the woman stopped, turned around, drove back, and apologized profusely. My still shaken-up husband noticed she had two small children in the backseat and she was pretty shaken up herself.

Luckily, no one was injured. The lawn will grow back.

Meanwhile, we're counting our blessings. 

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