(2019 Grand Teton Ep 13)
Despite our attempts to plan for and control everything, unexpected things happen. Familiar surroundings, familiar repair facilities and familiar hospitals and doctors at home help us deal with most unexpected events.
But when you are thousands of miles from home and the unexpected happens, it’s a different matter entirely.
We were enjoying Grand Teton National Park after 11 days on the road. We hiked three miles above Jenny Lake to Hidden Falls and our plans were to take a boat back to where we started. But the last boat of the day was at 4 pm and we knew we could not make it time to catch the boat.
We viewed the falls for a few minutes and then started back up the trail, not looking forward to the 90-minute hike to the parking lot. The trail led up a steep slope for about a half mile, followed by a long descent to the parking lot.
Then it happened. I caught my right foot on a rock and fell. Stumbling forward, I saw there was a drop off to the left side of the trail. With nothing to grab onto and not wanting to fall down the side, I tumbled to the ground trying to stop myself with my hands. My left hand jammed into a rock and my right cheek scraped along the ground.
Sprawled on the ground, I slowly tested various body parts to see if anything was hurt. Pat helped me up and I noticed the middle finger on my left hand was bulging at a peculiar angle. I touched my cheek and my fingers were covered with blood.
A hiker stopped and offered first aid tape to tape my throbbing fingers together. Pat dabbed the blood from my cheek with a wet handkerchief.
As we hiked the trail to the parking lot, Pat and I discussed my injuries. We decided I would have to visit a medical facility to have my finger and cheek looked at.
Back at our truck, we learned the clinic in the park closed at 5 pm. So Pat began the 15 mile drive to Jackson, the nearest town. We called our insurance provider and found out there was an urgent care facility in town, but it also closed at 5 pm. So we headed to the emergency room at St Johns Medical Center.
We arrived a bit past 6:30 pm and anticipating high ER charges, I asked the receptionist if there were any other urgent care clinics in town. There was one across town affiliated with the hospital, but it closed at 7 pm.
We made it to the clinic a little past 6:45 pm. An x-ray of my finger revealed it was dislocated. I was glad I did not need stitches for my cheek injury.
After trying twice to reset my finger, they splinted it, told me to keep it iced and made an appointment at Teton Orthopedic the next day for further treatment.
The next morning I was told the hand specialist at Teton Orthopedic had the day off. However, when she saw the x-ray, she made a special trip to the office. She was able to pop it in place to my immediate relief! I was then sent to get a more permanent splint. Shortly after noon we were finished!
Since retiring, this was our first significant unexpected medical issue. We had several unexpected issues with our camper however during our 2018 Alaska trip – major repairs of the slide in Texas, a medicine cabinet falling off the wall along the Alaska Highway and bad wheel bearings just outside Haines, Alaska.
We realized things could have been MUCH worse in each situation – I could have been seriously injured in Grand Teton, the slide could have fallen out along the road in a remote area, or the camper could have required a long and expensive tow.
We have learned and re-learned several important lessons from the situations above:
- We are under the watchful eye of loving God. To us, unexpected things happen. To Him, nothing is unexpected. Any situation can be used to glorify Him. We don’t always know why such things happen, but we know He is in control over everything.
(Psalm 121:8 – The Lord will watch over your coming and going both now and forevermore) - There are many, many people who help in unexpected situations: a man with first aid tape along a trail, a worker at an auto parts store in Haines, Alaska who gave us the name of a repairman who fixed our camper bearings at the campsite for a reasonable price, a manager at Camping World near San Antonio who gave our camper repairs high priority. The list of helpful people goes on and on.
- Being anxious about a situation (or anticipated situation) doesn’t help. Pat and I pray, discuss. seek advice from others and then trust as God guides us. (Philippians 4:6-7: Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God).
Unexpected things will continue to happen when we are at home and on the road. We are called to remember and often re-learn the lessons above. And, more often than not, we are taught new lessons as well.
Next week: so easy, even Ansel Adams could photograph it!
Take the LONG Road... 