Training, Friends, and Miracles

Hey All,
So, just a quick update. Last week went by really fast, as we worked short 8 hour days and got off Thursday at noon. Our final two crew members started work on Tuesday, which was good. Mikey is the one who helped me apply to the internship and all, and Katie was an SCA last year. I like them both a lot. Anyway, most of the week we worked around the Cache and did a little bit of saw work up at the campground we had been at previously. Thursday, like I said, we got off at noon and I headed down to Chehalis to visit one of my friends from school. We had a really good time- watched movies, drove around, played with fire arms ;-) I headed back Saturday and went to a BBQ the crew was doing for Lakota’s birthday. That was really fun, too. There were massive amounts of ribs, wings, and steak there, which was fantastic in and of itself :-P We also played croquet and had a fire and just hung out. It felt good to be back with the crew, since the training has been so hectic that I hadn’t seen much of Paul, Wilson, Taryn, or Tim.

One quick story involves the drive back from Chehalis to the BBQ. Really, it was a God thing, once again. I was exhausted and struggling to stay awake. I had my windows down and music on, but I still felt pretty sleepy. I should have pulled over. But I didn’t. About 10 minutes outside of PA, I suddenly jolted awake going 55 mph with one tire on the road and one in the grass. I vaguely remember some sort of barrier, like a wall, but I very distinctly remember cranking my wheel hard to the right and swerving back on to the road. What followed was an intense struggle with my car to regain control as I zig-zagged back and forth across the 2 lane, one way road. Eventually, (probably less than 30 seconds) I was able to stay in one lane, and then calmly pull off the road and check my rig over. The good news, other than my truck being fine, is that I was thoroughly awake after that. In all seriousness, though, it was one those moments where all you can do is thank God you are alive and undamaged. There were cars ahead of and behind me, though by God’s grace the lane next to me was clear, and there was quite a bit of buffer space around my truck. So, all in all, I thank God that He protected me, and I learned my lesson pretty thoroughly.

Oh, one more story. I was riving home from the BBQ and Dustie called. We were chatting and I pulled into a parking lot a couple of minutes from my house because I knew if I kept driving I would lose reception. Anyway, I had just hung up with her when a ranger (the law enforcement of the park) pulled into the lot. I was like, “oh, come on. I don’t want to deal with cops right now.” See, it was getting dark, I was the only one there, and I really wasn’t doing anything since I had just hung up the phone. I wasn’t worried, but I didn’t really want to deal with the hassle right then. Anyway, I couldn’t decide if I should just sit there or get out or what, so I settled for rolling down the window. He rolled down his and I simply said that I lived in the park and had been on the phone and had stopped so I wouldn’t lose reception. To my relief, his reply was “Oh okay. I thought I recognized the pickup. I just wanted to make sure everything was okay.” I know that is a really random story, but it felt really good to know that even though I didn’t know the guy, he was looking out for me because he knew I lived there. Anyway…

Other than that, please be praying for me as I wrestle with what to do next year. I plan on eventually finishing my degree, but other than that, I really have no ideas. There are a lot of options and very little direction at this point. I take comfort in knowing that God will provide for where He wants me to go, and that He will guide me if I listen. So, be praying that I will listen and that I will follow willingly.

Love you guys, and hope to hear from you soon.

Amanda