"Summer Vacation on the Surface of the Sun- Part 1 "I saw God's hands today..."

I've decided to document our "Summer Vacation on the Surface of the Sun aka Arizona" as my re-emergence into blogging this week. I've chosen my first entry to come from an experience that occurred near the end of our trip because the impressions from it have impacted me greatly and I don't want to forget how I felt...

I Saw God's Hands today.

The day began like the others on 'White Tail Ranch' at the Richin's Roost. It was monsoon season in Arizona and the week had been particularly wet. Although we experienced the closest thing to 'torrential rain' I've ever seen, for at least an hour each day, the river bed remained dry. Which meant it was free for children ages 2-109 to run in and out of it freely.

It was muddy. Very muddy. And even for a while I pretended to think I could make like a pioneer and get dirt in between my fingernails; but ultimately, I had to admit, I've become a princess. I love my nicely pedicured toes, fresh manicures, freely flowing yet product managed curls. It was a real stretch for me to wear a bandanna, as it matched absolutely nothing I brought with me.


I had just put Ruby down for a nap in our camper. She was resting comfortably in the Pack-n-Play and Lulu was coloring happily with her cousin, Nutmeg. I took off my wet, dirty running shoes and surveyed the damage to my Sparkle Toes pedicure. I happened to look out the window, and to my horror, saw one of the most terrifying sights of my life...

Many of those who know me well, know of my mortal fear/fascination with water. I realize many women have fears similar to this. However, my level of fear is unreasonable and extreme. When I have nightmares involving my children, they usually involve water. If you didn't know that about me, it's okay because I really try to hide it since it's a glimpse into my crazy.
There's the foreshadowing, now on with the story...

As I looked out of the camper, a wall of muddy, gushing water was pummeling towards our camp. The force of the water created loud crashing sounds as boulders, bushes and tree trunks barreled onward, pushed by the flood. (This picture was taken a few hours after the beginning of the flood. The picture doesn't quite do the speed and depth of the water justice. At its height, the raging water reached 4 feet.)

My stomach lurched and I instinctively ran out of our camper, knowing that Bunny and her cousins were playing around the riverbed a short time before. I ran towards the big tire swing and bridge, not noticing until later the cuts sticks and rocks were making on my bare feet. He-Man, knowing I would be a mess, found me right away. He must have known how I would react, because as he embraced me, he assured me that Sunshine and Bunny were accounted for and safe. As cliche as it may seem, he always knows how to put me at ease, simply by wrapping me up in his arms.

After a moment, I was okay enough to gather my whits. I ushered my girls and any of the older cousins to the camper for rainy day art projects. As for Little Bug, Wonder Woman's youngest and Jack Jack Attack, I didn't give them much of a choice since they're like most two-three year olds who would just as well make like skipping rocks and launch themselves into the rushing water.

Minutes later, with my super hero Mother-in-law and me in a very cramped and quickly becoming stuffy camper, we entertained 14 children with a handful of markers and wood art. That is when I was overcome with emotion at having being faced with what was for me, a nightmarish scenario. She hugged me and reassured me that all was well. It's a small, tender moment I will forever cherish.

As the day went on, everything returned to normal. Apparently, this was something most of the attendants had experienced before. Therefore it wasn't as big of a deal to them. As I apologized to one of my sils, her response was that she found it 'amusing'. At the height of my hysterics, I probably was quite entertaining! I realized that while I may seem overprotective to some, I can offer a precious safety to my children and their cousins. This may occasionally be an annoyance, but this time it meant that my brothers and sisters could take a moment and observe the majesty of Mother Nature, knowing their children were safe. In the grander scheme of things, I am serving as God's hands by offering added protection for our little ones and I'm okay with that.




I do that kind of thing for her.















And for him.

And for Little Bug.

And I'm not sorry.

As a side note, my Brother-in-law, J-Dub, reached new hero status during the whole episode when I heard, that moments before the wash came through, he, impervious to the potential hazard he was facing, starting chucking little darlings out of the river bed.
Hail, the Conquering Hero!

As night fell on the camp, we could still hear sounds of rocks overturning in the water but the levels were lowering. I took a few moments to ponder what had just happened and realized something...

I saw God's hands that day.

I saw Them, with the strength and ferocity to move mountains of mud and water. To create valleys where before lay mountains.

Yet, those Hands seemed to freeze the wall of water long enough to get small children out of harms way.

I saw God's hands today in the form of good men, acting as bucklers and shields to those who couldn't have made it to safety on their own.

I saw God's hands in the form of hundreds of watchful eyes, carefully tending to each child who approached the muddy river.

I was God's hands today as I cared for a few of those sweet and precious little ones. I felt His hands gently rest on my shoulders, giving me comfort and letting me know all was well. And reminding me that while I can always offer a little extra protection for those I love, He is at the helm and offers the most complete, supernal protection of all.

And I counted that day as a good day.