SCREECH, BAM!

Recognize the sounds in the title of this blog? I gotta say, its been years since I've been in a car accident. And the last time I was, it was all my fault. This time...it was not.

Brett and Austin and I were on our way to the grocery store when it happened. All three of us in the car. My thoughts were on Austin the entire 500 milliseconds as it occured. We were approaching an intersection just 100 yards from a red light, so thankfully we were only going about 20mph or a little less when we hit the guy. He had a stop sign. We did not. He stopped at the stop sign. He did not see us, so he began to pull his 70's model full-sized Ford truck through the intersection. I gasped! Brett swerved to try and miss him, but it was too late. Our left front end met his right front end with unexpected force...a force that would later prove to be enough to put all three of us in pain. The entire half second seemed like it took a full 30 seconds. Slow motion...just like the movies. The few seconds following, silent. Then Austin says "Boom! Truck." :) My observant little 22 month old.

Brett and I looked at each other, then at Austin, making sure we were all ok. Everyone was fine, but then adrenaline was still pumping through our veins.

The next few minutes were full of calling the police, the insurance companies, moving the cars, and talking to a couple of Mountain Home police officers.

A few people stopped to see if everyone was ok, an affirmation to what I already knew, that we have good people surrounding us here. One of those people was a really sweet old lady in a minivan who offered us a ride back home. Austin and I gratefully took the offer. Come to find out, she lives not one mile from us. The kind officer who took Brett's statement turned out to live not one mile from us in the other direction. Its so nice to see neighbors taking care of neighbors around here. You don't see much of that these days...even in the South.

So, the sweet little old lady took Austin and me back to our house where I put the carseat in Brett's car and returned to the scene to pick up Brett.

On our way to get groceries after the accident (ya gotta move on with life, right) I was talking to Brett and he was saying how repentant and sorry the guy who pulled out in front of us was. My heart went out to him. A simple mistake will cause him grief and inconvenience for the next few weeks. Now, granted it will cause us the same grief and inconvenience, but I still felt bad for the guy.

Later on, Brett went to the hospital to get checked out. He was in a lot of pain. He took the brunt of it, being in the driver's seat. Everything checked out except for a bit of swelling in his back and neck. Austin and I will go to the doctor on Monday just for precautionary measures. I'm sure everything is ok with us, too. We just want to be certain since we're both feeling the effects of whiplash already.

All in all, everything is ok. We're ok. The car will get fixed. It will be worth less...much less, having been wrecked now, but we are ok. The other guy is ok. Everything is fine and we have good people all around us. :) We are blessed!

Struggles of a Stubborn Woman

I am a stubborn woman. Ask my husband, he will confirm it. I used to be a stubborn teenager (and before that, a stubborn little girl). Ask my mom, she will confirm it. If things don't go my way I stress out and question whether or not I'm a good person, teacher, wife, or mother. Sometimes I'll cry or even throw a hissy fit. :P The latter is more fun, but the former is more mature...so I alternate.

Lately, I've been having a major problem...because of my stubbornness.
My problem is my calling in church. I HATE PRIMARY! Maybe I should rephrase that. I HATE BEING IN PRIMARY! Primary itself is actually a GREAT program for the children in the church. The problem is that I don't do well with other people's kids. I never babysat as a teenager for a darn good reason. Other people's kids stress me out. I don't know how to relate to them, nor do I want to. Back in February I was called as the Nursery Leader. AAAH! The only thing worse than the combination of me and other people's kids is me and other peoples TODDLERS! Have I already said "AAAH!"? Because, "AAAAAAH!" I hardly feel like I have a handle on MY OWN toddler! What the heck was the Bishop smokin when get got THAT revelation!?! hehehe...I had to laugh at that one.
So, because of my stubbornness and my fear of other people's TODDLERS, I've been carrying around this grudge, this resentment for anyone associated with this calling. I've been snarling and snapping at everyone who asks "so, how's your calling?" Poor, poor innocent bystanders. I'm not one to hold back much. I don't put on a facade for the sake of saving face. I'm not two-faced. What you see is what you get with me. And when I'm in a foul mood, its pretty obvious. Embarassing sometimes, yes. But you can never accuse me of being fake.
(BIG SIGH)
Today, I've had a change of heart...a big change of heart. I someone at church opened up to me today. This woman was not someone whom I thought would ever do such a thing with me. I am her Visiting Teacher, but I'm intimidated by her, so I never make the effort to go visit her...much less, call her. She told me that she had once been in my position...with a 10-month old...while pregnant. And she endured it for a year and a half! WOW! I was floored.
I sat there thinking for a while. My heart was softened. I thought to myself, "surely, if this woman can do Nursery with a 10-month old and a baby on the way for 18 months, surely, SURELY, i could handle 9 more months of Nursery with my own toddler." (Bishop promised I would only have to be in there for a year.)
Every begrudging feeling, every ounce of resentment melted away. Replacing it was a love and respect for the women in Primary and a new understanding that the man who called me to this position was listening to the Holy Spirit.
I knew then that it was time to submit my will to that of Heavenly Father's. Hard as that may be for me, I knew it was the best thing. :)

Who knows, maybe this calling will help me become a better mother.