Safe at Home

  “Praise the Lord; praise God our savior! For each day he carries us in his arms.” Psalm 68:19

  I apologize for not letting my readers know I would be away. I am home now from camping in Killbear Provincial Park, earlier than planned. This was unexpected but the brakes failed on the car Thursday afternoon.

  The day before, we had spent a lovely day hiking, swimming in Georgian Bay, having a picnic and paddling around in the kayak. I even had a chance to do a couple of water colour sketches and was absolutely delighted when a small, golden butterfly landed on my paint palette. It had been attracted by the bright yellow paint block!

  Thursday morning it rained, curtailing any activity except for the need to head out of the park to buy ice for the cooler. We were blessed to see a young buck grazing at the side of the road on the way out of the park. Coming back, the car brakes started to act up. They got soft, my foot pushing the brake pedal to the floor before getting any response. The red warning light for brake issues lit up the dashboard. It was enough of a concern that when we got to our site, I started making phone calls to local garages. (Thankfully there was cell phone reception!)

  It ended up that the earliest anyone could fix the car would have been next Friday. We had neither food nor transportation to make extending our stay possible. I don’t  know if our site would have even been available. Moving everything would have been difficult to say the least.

  I called my own mechanic here at home to see if there was something I could do that would fix the brake issue. Previously, small things had happened to the car that I was able to fix with their assistance. There wasn’t anything they could do about the brakes.

  So here’s why I am so thankful the brakes failed when they did. Firstly, we weren’t speeding along on the highway. Had the brakes failed then, it could have been disastrous if not fatal. I shudder at the thought. Instead we were putt-putting along at the 20 km speed posted in the park. The brakes worked long enough to get the car parked on site.

  My folks had given me a birthday gift earlier this year: CAA roadside assistance with a 200 km towing distance. My home garage was in and around that distance mark. The tow truck driver waived any overage charges.

  As I packed my travel wallet before we left home, I had felt a strong need to make absolutely sure the CAA card was included. Praise God!

  Ah, yes, I am very thankful for the tow truck driver and the company he worked for. On Thursday I had called Constables Towing in Parry Sound thinking they might be able to fix my car. They couldn’t, only being a towing company, but they were affiliated with CAA so they would be the ones towing me home. I called them a couple of times. Once to let them know I would need them for a long haul and the other time to make sure they could fit two passengers in the truck. (CAA would only guarantee the card holder’s transportation.) Oh, and I also wanted to make sure they would take the car with a kayak strapped to the roof.

  I don’t know what we would have done if Constables could have only taken one of us home. There are bears in the park so leaving a cooler or any foodstuff out is dangerous. A person wouldn’t want that sort of thing in the tent! It’s a moot point, but I am grateful it didn’t end up being an issue. Either that or I would have needed to go back once the car had been dropped off. God spared me that, too. Friday traffic heading north is a nightmare!

  Yesterday morning there was no dew. Despite Thursday morning’s torrential rain, and thanks to a good stiff breeze, we didn’t have to wait for tarps or tents to dry off before packing them up. Farmers say that no dew in the morning means rain by nightfall.

  Once the car was packed on Friday morning and CAA called, Constables towing called a couple of times to let me know the timeframe and even to let me know when the truck had left Parry Sound. The city is roughly a half hour from the park. They didn’t have to do this because CAA informed me, too. It meant a lot, having the personal touch in a stressful situation.

  I got to enjoy the scenery on the drive home far better than when I am driving. We were sitting way up high in a big truck with a huge windshield. That and I didn’t have to watch the road!

  My car, with the kayak on top, has been locked in the garage for the weekend. I had been concerned someone would steal the kayak because it was merely strapped to the roof, not locked. And even though I hadn’t thought to pray about it, God knew my concern and once again I sing His praises!

  H. pointed out to me when all was said and done, I had handled the crises very well, what with making all the calls to organize and assess what needed to happen.  I give praise and honour to God for sustaining me and guiding me on what to do next.

  As a final, delightful, piece of this story, two deer wandered past our site on Thursday evening. I had had my artist’s eye on a massive, ancient birch that lay on the ground, having wanted to draw or paint it since we had arrived. All that was lacking was a reason for drawing it, a focal point. One of the deer wandered up to it. I got a photo of her next to the downed, art inspiring tree. While we waited for the tow truck, I had plenty of time to do a rough sketch of the tree and was able to add the deer into the drawing because of the photo.

  Even though having our trip cut short was a bit disappointing, this adventure has only served to remind me that God is truly in all things. AMEN!