The "near misses"

The "near misses".  

I've had a lot of near misses.  No, I've not had serious injury, illness, cancer, been maimed or hospitalized for long periods of time.  I applaud the heroes who have done so and do not in anyway diminish what these brave souls have been through.  I'm talking about the miss is as good as a mile, should have, could have, what if, and only by the grace of God did I come out of that unscathed.  

I believe God has been by my side my whole life, letting me get just close enough to the fire, just close enough.  He always, for whatever reason, has pulled me back just in the nick of time.  Why? Maybe to pass on my story, maybe to show me who He is.  Maybe to give me something to write about.  No, it's to show me His grace and mercy because on many occasions I didn't deserve to get pulled out.

Here is my list, in order, that I remember:

1.  At age three I was riding on the back of my mother's bicycle. My right foot got caught in the spokes and cut my ankle right above the distal end of the fibula bone and the large vein.   I can still remember, 45 years later, sitting on a sink counter with my foot in a pool of blood. What if we had not been right in front of a friends house? I remember the ER, the shots, and the stitches. I still have a scar.  

2. When I was 15 I was stung under my right eye by a wasp. The ER doctor said never get stung again, could be allergic next time. (See next time)

3.  The day before 9th grade I was riding my horse bare back and barefoot for the hundredth time.  In the road.  She slipped on a rock and fell.  On me. I have a scar where a rock was embedded in my left foot.  Did not hit my head.  Did not get hit by a car. 

4.  The coat hanger abortion.  Didn't do it. Went to an unknown doctor even knowing the horror stories.  But at 16 who listens.  I have birthed two babies by C-section. Because of that? Probably.  

5. After bad split from boyfriend in #4 my mom thought I should get away.  I went to New Braunsfuls with kids of friends of hers.  I didn't know them. We went tubing on a hot summer's day.  I got drunk, passed out, threw up, awoke sometime later on a guy's lap on his tube, still in the river. Why didn't I drown?  I was dehydrated, sunburned, probably sun poisoned.  Booze, water, sun,,, many don't live through that.  

6,7, 8,9.   Jail. Not me in it, getting someone out.   Houston, NY, 33rd street.  Not a safe place for a petite white girl in the middle of the night with cash in her pocket.  I hear of murder and rape in these situations all the time.  I come out with emotional scars and nightmares.  

10.  Traffic lights.  On my way home one night on a rural road I take my foot off the gas at a  green light.  In a split second I think  it's green, go", then a large white van blows through the red.  It happened in two seconds.  By the grace of God.  

12.  Out-patient hospital procedure. It was supposed to take an hour.  I was supposed to wake up minutes later and go home.  I couldn't wake up.  When I did, I threw up and went back to sleep. That happened several times.  About four hours later I finally woke up and was sent home.  Over medicated? Reaction to the drugs? Don't know.  Alive - yes. 

13. Esophageal spasms.  I didn't know that's what they were until I had tests.  I would, and still occasionally do, spontaneously choke on saliva or liquids.  Usually when I am home alone.  Breathing stops, heart stops briefly, coughing and gagging follow to try to clear the passage.  I'm thinking I'm going to pass out one day and die.  I've learned to keep my phone nearby and how to keep calm.  14.  The garage door spring broke and the door came crashing down seconds before walking under it. 

15.  Continuation of #2.  The wasp sting from previous blog post.  Yes I was scared. Of the pain. Not of dying.  After all this is #15, I think.  Maybe there are more.  

          16.  There was a coral snake in the toilet in our 'new' house when I was in 3rd grade.  
           Came inches away from sitting on/over it.   Can you imagine?

There will probably be more near misses.  God got my attention long ago so He has another purpose.  I have a heightened sense of awareness, a laundry list of scenarios and how to live through each of them.  I have stories to tell people about what not to do because you may not have God holding you back like I do.  For example: don't drink, don't marry someone who does, don't have sex before marriage - purity is beautiful, no cohabitation with the opposite sex before marriage - a sure relationship killer,  never bail someone out of jail immediately and never more than once, wear shoes (I still don't I admit), wear sunscreen, wear a life jacket, look before you sit, talk to people about your problems,  trust your gut feeling and don't back down, stay calm around venomous creatures, pray - a lot, have faith, be prepared!!!  

Be prepared.  That covers a multitude from first aid to eternity.  Eternity is the end point for the physical and forever for the spirit.  Be prepared for that first and foremost.  God is leading me down a winding, bumpy, beautiful path, now matter how long he decides it is.   Let Him hold your hand like he has mine.  

Are you ready for this?

Let God's love guide the way.

Rolling with the punches... or whatever the tide brings

I'm siting at my desk pondering my weekend and the multiple family events coming up and suddenly I've got tears in my eyes.  Life is so fragile.  I've had more "near misses" than I  care to admit or innumerate.  I'm not going to lay a bunch of scripture on you, just a "think about it".

My son leaves Korea for his new base this week.  My daughter graduates high school two weeks Friday then Sunday we are having a wedding shower for my son (the one leaving Korea) and his fiancé.  My Mom is driving over from Texas for the occasion.  In August he gets married.  My 94 yo grandmother whom I love dearly broke her hip a month ago and cannot come.   

I cannot imagine not being there for all of this.

Why did I cry?  Because of the week-end.   My husband and I went to the beach to spend time with our youngest girls and to celebrate our anniversary.  After a very nice picnic lunch I was stung by a wasp and had an immediate allergic reaction that sent me to the ER.  I was in full panic attack and full of hives, swelling, and intense pain by the time we reached the hospital.

I lived through it.  But what if I hadn't? What if I didn't have Benadryl in my purse?  Would my body look like this

instead of this?

Five hours after ER visit and massive IV infusion.

The next morning I awoke to a glorious sunrise

 and my son called me on a video chat to wish me a happy Mother's Day.  While strolling hand in hand with my amazing husband down the beach,

footprints in the sand

I was very grateful to be alive!

But...what if I wasn't?  Yes, I would miss out on all those things and so much more.  However, I know where I'm going when I die and I'm not afraid.  Abba Father, God has promised me life eternal with him where there is no fear of wasp stings, no milk allergies, no bloating sea turtles, no pain, no war only Love! For that, for a fleeting second I kinda wished I didn't have the Benadryl....trust me it was only in the moment of excruciating pain...

I love my life and all the plans gone awry, however, life on this earth is not all there is.  Thanks be to God I have Him to look forward to!

Pelican enjoying the morning

me and foreshadow of things to come

Newsflash!

Local Christian Writer Releases 10^th Book

            A local woman from Apopka, Colleen Wait, is set to release her tenth book, Jacob’s Well, in May.  Wait is a Christian-Inspirational writer, blogger and free-lance editor, and has been publishing her full-length books through Create Space and Amazon Kindle for about five years.

            While cranking out two books a year may not seem like a big deal to the average Joe, it definitely stands out when you realize these books came about in the midst of a chaotic full-time schedule of medical transcription and raising two children of her own, plus two “bonus” daughters with husband, Mark.  Add the many hours of volunteer service to youth and the homeless at the West Orange Church of Christ, in Winter Garden, and ten books is definitely a big deal. “Big,” however, is not a word anyone would use to describe first impressions of Wait.

            One of the first things you notice about Colleen Wait is her stature.  Wait is tiny, as in vertically challenged, standing at barely five feet.  She’s also lean, as in marathon distance runner lean.   As a matter of fact, if all you ever knew about Colleen Wait is her dogged determination to master the 26.2 miles of a grueling marathon you’d walk away impressed.  But that determination has been brewing for decades, and was borne out of an even more remarkable towering faith.  And once you know the height of her faith, Wait stands taller than anyone in the room.

            Writing has been an outlet for this naturally shy woman since her challenging childhood.  The result was an avenue for creative expression, as well as a coping mechanism for her hardships.  Those hardships are the foundation on which she built the soaring faith that is the source of all her stories.

            In Jacob’s Well, Wait tells the story of Analeigh Kendrick, a teenage girl who is led by her faith in God to sow goodness in the midst of bad circumstances.  It is a story of planting seeds, both agricultural and spiritual, in the face of hardship and opposition.  Wait says she hopes readers will walk away with a sense of hope, and will be encouraged to pursue their own opportunities to share goodness in challenging times.

            Wait is a genuinely reserved person who says she wishes she could be more like the main character in Jacob’s Well. 

            “I’m not outgoing or outspoken.  I get knots in my stomach when talking to people [I don’t know well].  I force myself, but it doesn’t come easily,” said Wait.  “I know my gift is in the written word, not the verbal.”  Now Wait uses her writing in an effort to help others who may be struggling.

[Other books written by Colleen Wait are:  Freedom Race, Captured, Lessons Learned at Summer Camp, Sanctuary, Remnant, Man in the Mirror, Love on the Run, Mount Mission, and Black Purple Sky.  All are available through Amazon.com and Create Space. You can follow the author on: colleenwaitwrites.blogspot.com ]

             -Laura Ann Day

****  Jacob's Well will be free on Amazon 5/10/2013 and 5/11/2013 ****

The Apopka Chief 5/24/2013

Jacob's Well

I am thrilled to announce the release of my tenth book, Jacob's Well.   It is currently available on Amazon as a kindle and will be released in the next week as a paperback.   

"Analeigh Kendrick is given news that she soon realizes is opportunity. Eager to do God's work she turns a small town upside down when she is not intimidated by a preacher who has firm control over it and the church. She sees through him, learns what the town needs, and most importantly, relies solely on God for her every move. Analeigh plants seeds in everyone she meets giving the gift of life."

May 10th and 11th I am having a New Release Promotion.  This book will be free on Amazon.com.