Tuesday, Aug. 23, 2005
... Whatever the weather
So, it's been an interesting day. Put it this way: By the time I got to work at 2:00 this afternoon, it felt like it was at least 5. Ironically, my 8-hour shift went rather quickly, even though it was a really slow day. Before that, however, I spent 2 hours on the phone to various insurance companies, police officers, and other nice people; went out for breakfast with Nadine; went to my dad's shop to pick up the truck; did laundry; and still managed a half-hour nap before work.
Yes. And for what happened yesterday... I'll let my mom's words describe it, since I really don't feel like typing it all out. I've got to explain it verbally often enough as it is. So, here goes.
Recently we observed, in the same worship service, a baby dedication and the interview of one of Alida's friends who is moving across the country to attend medical school. During the baby dedication, the pastor commented on the fact that the dedication of a child to the Lord by parents has a different reality at that young age than again releasing the child into His care at an older age, but the principle and act of faith is the same. I was struck by the fact that just as a small baby's parents were dedicating their child and his future to the Lord, essentially, too, were Nadine's parents doing so again, as she prepared for the next major step in her life.As Alida prepares to move next week to the New York City area for ten months, we, too, are at that next major "releasing" step in her life. Even as we prepare for that, we were reminded last night that our children aren't really ours, but God's, and that He has ultimate care over them. On her way back to the city after taking a load of moving boxes to the farm, Alida was rear-ended by an impaired driver, and lived to tell the tale. In the left lane, the back end of her car was clipped by a driver going 130 km/hr in a 90 zone, spun across the other lane and skidded sideways into the right-hand ditch. She was not hurt, except for possible whiplash, and her car does not appear to have a lot of damage. The attending policeman reminded us that collisions with drunk drivers often don't end so well, of which we are too aware. We are very grateful for the Lord's hand on her and her vehicle, and it is a vivid reminder that even when our kids are close to us, we aannot protect them from everything, but God is with them all the time. Just as we dedicated her to God as a baby, we need to leave her in His hands now, whether she is on the highway close to home or moving across the continent. He is in control, and He accomplishes His purposes and enables us to cope with whatever happens in the process. I pray we will always remember that!
So, that's that. I am, as they told me at the accident site, now a statistic. At least I'm an alive statistic.
infinite || abyss
posted at 10:45 p.m.
