Our daughter had a 🏐volleyball game last Thursday night. Ken and I love to attend volleyball games. It’s fun to sit in the stands with friends. We all chat and 😂laugh and video way too many plays. Ken gets at least two bags of 🍿popcorn and calls it dinner. My purse is stuffed with my own snacks. At this particular game, our team played great. The celebrations on the court were loud, and the crowd was pumped. 🎉
The game took place in Cassville, which is about an hour and fifteen minutes away. The 🚗drive includes an interstate and a tight, two-lane road that wanders up and down hills with no shoulder and 🌳wooded areas on either side. Ken continuously scanned both sides of the narrow roadway as we drove home. He knew that this was the prime location and time of night for 🦌deer to venture into our path.
Our vehicle is a 2021 Subaru Forester with all of the safety features. It is equipped with Eyesight, which monitors traffic movement. There’s an automatic pre-collision braking system and a distraction mitigation system. Even with all of those safety features and Ken’s watchful 👀eyes, a 🦌deer still managed to run straight for the car! Because he was paying close attention, Ken was able to swerve so that the 🦌deer hit the front passenger side rather than the entire front of the car. Fortunately, I was looking at Angelina in the backseat when the deer approached. I’m sure I would have 😱screamed, and that could have made Ken’s quick reflexes react differently. As it was, I saw the 🦌deer after the hit as it went flying into the air along with parts of the car. Ken surveyed the damage. The car was driveable, which was a good thing. We needed to get to a safer location than this tiny road in the middle of nowhere. As we progressed, it was evident that the steering and tires were okay, meaning that we could possibly get the vehicle 🏠home. We made it to the interstate when every light on the dashboard started flashing. We lost all fluids. Time to pull off and wait for help.😖
Angelina reached out to friends who graciously came to wait with us and take us home. 💕Ken called the Roadside Assistance number from our insurance company. The jury is still out on their performance through this mess. 😬No answer from that line at all and very little communication since. Current rating 2/10- let’s hope that improves throughout the process. The Subaru OnStar system is a 10/10. 👍🏻It worked perfectly, and they sent help to us quickly.
There are a whole bunch of things to be 💖grateful for in this situation. First, Ken’s quick swerve to avoid a direct hit. 🌈No injuries. 🌈Decent weather while we waited outside. 🌈Getting the car to a safe place to wait for help. 🌈Friends who got out of bed to come and save us. 🌈A rental car to use while my car gets fixed.
I think the deer hitting our car is a lot like life. We don’t always know what’s going to happen. Things can change rapidly and unexpectedly. Life can turn on a dime even when you’re watching, too. 💯Even when you’re playing it safe. Sometimes, it’s good. 🥳Other times, it’s devastating. 😭The phone call. That promotion. Graduation. A job loss. College acceptance. Birth. Death. Injuries. Tornadoes. Awards. Marriage. Divorce. The good and bad events can both feel stressful and hit us hard.
What if…a deer jumps out? Those deer are there- just waiting on the edge of the road, hidden in the 🌳trees. Are you ready for unexpected celebrations? Are you paying attention to potential disasters? And, most importantly, will you look for the 🌈blessings? They will be there waiting on the edge of the road, hidden in the 🌳trees, too.💖
sharing the stairs 