Our Final Farewell

We lost a dear member of the family yesterday. They say that cats have nine lives. We know that we only have one. The Man's car, Bodona (some Portuguese name he gave it. I don't know, so don't even bother asking), had about 13. It still amazes us how many accidents this car has been through. And it just kept on runnin'. The Man bought this Honda Civic after he got home from his mission, and yesterday we had to (finally) say goodbye. He was in a pretty serious accident yesterday, and there is absolutely no chance of recovery for the car. Luckily for us, The Man is doing pretty good. A couple bumps and bruises, pretty stiff all over, but basically okay. It definitely could have been much worse.

He was heading east and the other driver was heading west on the same road. He was in the far right lane, and there was another car in the left lane that had just moved over to turn left. The other driver was waiting to turn left, but apparently couldn't see because of the car next to The Man's. But he decided to go anyway, and turned directly in front of The Man. There wasn't time to swirve or avoid it at all, and he had just a split second to see it coming. He braced himself and thought, "I wonder how bad this is going to be?" It's strange how fast our brains think. He was able to have that thought in just a fraction of a second.

The police came to take a report, cited the other driver and told The Man it was completely the other guy's fault. The Man called me and told me not to worry, that he was fine, but it was pretty bad. Of course, I was terrified, but glad to be getting the phone call from him, rather than some stranger telling me that he was in the hospital or something. I found out where he was, and by the time I arrived, the policeman was just leaving, and the tow truck was hauling off both cars. On my way over I said a prayer to let Heavenly Father know how grateful I was that the accident wasn't any worse than it was. I was so thankful that he was still alive. And then I started to cry, thinking about how common it is for people to just be having a normal day, when tragedy strikes.

I just woke up that day, and fixed breakfast like every other day. I hadn't even seen in him that morning (as I never do) since he leaves so early. The girls and I got dressed, and I went to the gym. We got back and I hopped in the shower, got myself ready, and started to make lunch. I had carpool that day and dropped four little ones off at preschool. We came back and I put Devil Child down for a nap. Everything was normal. And then he could have been gone, and our whole lives would have changed. I thought about those kids on the school bus in Alabama, who were also having a "normal day," and thought they were just on their way to class. Their families had no idea their lives were about to change forever. It happens too often, and I'm not prepared for something like that. I guess you can't ever be prepared for something like that.

It's been said that we are only given challenges and trials that Heavenly Father knows we are strong enough to handle. He will never give us something more than we are able to overcome. I'm thankful He knows I am strong enough to lose a car, but that I am very weak, and could not be strong enough to lose my husband.

Again, sorry there's no pictures. If I find a way to get them from The Man's phone to the computer, I'll add them to this post another day.