By the end of this year I had finally turned 17. I had a whole year of dating under my belt and spend the whole summer brushing up on my school work. In the great state of Utah the law allows a 17 year old to take the G.E.D. test. And I passed with flying colors. I was so glad to be free of high school. Now I could study whatever I really wanted.
Earlier in the year I had come across something interesting. My mom had brought someone to our house that practiced iridology. The woman looked in my eyes like they were a map of my entire body. She saw problems in my stomach, my ears, my brain. Everything she identified co-ordinated with things I had been feeling but didn't know how to work on. She suggested some herbs and changes to diet that made sense and seemed doable. Then she said she saw heartache. I was shocked! "What?" I said. "How do you heal heart ache- Oh WAIT, no, I am NOT about to go to a SHRINK!" I thought for sure that's what she was going to suggest...
Her suggestion was that I try out this new form of healing called 'processing.' I was still skeptical but after one session, I was hooked. It's actually very similar to regular psycology only they incorperate other things to help identify and resolve issues faster. And for me the sessions included my relationship with my savior and allowed him to play a very significant part in my healing. It was awesome, and I wanted to learn to became a facilitator. I found out where the school was, what tuition would cost and was determine to save up to attend the class in my 18th year. God's plan was slightly different...
After completing my GED I got a job as a nanny with a family in New Jersey. I packed up and left home.
New Jersey was beautiful, the new family I worked for was amazing! They had two little girls, ages 3 years and 4 years, and a little 1 year old boy, the parents were both brain surgeons. The job seemed really cushy at first, things were going well. The girls went to preschool part of the day, napped another part, and the kids were generally very well behaved. The parents would refund for me to take the kids on outings and had a car for me to drive them around in. The dad's parents owned a fishing business and had a huge family dinner every Sunday with all the delicacies of their business on the table.
The problem came in that being surgeons, the parents often left early in the morning and would not arrive home till 7 or 8 in the evening. This left very little time for me to go spend any time with people my age and I am a VERY social creature but could not afford to stay out late or I would risk sleeping in too late...
I did however get Sundays off and at church I met a guy who was very cute and I invited him to come over during the day sometime.
I really should have thought it through better. I had no problem with letting the parents meet him, asking their permission to have him around, there was nothing questionable to me about having him around. My intentions were honest, I just wanted someone to talk to and hang out with... I just didn't see them and couldn't get a hold of them on the phone before he showed up at the house... So I let him in, having every intention of introducing him when the parents arrived.
In the end in turned out very badly. The dad came home early, my friend had to leave early. They barely had a chance to pass each other. The dad became very upset with me and asked what was going on. I tried to explain but he had no reason to trust me. I had only been working for them two whole weeks. He threatened to shoot the guy if he came around anymore, I voiced my frustration that there was no time for me to go out. The mom got home and said that maybe I was too young to be able to handle this job. She wanted me to do more crafts and cooking with the girls. I felt the expectations were unreasonable. What I was getting paid wasn't worth the hours and effort they wanted. They decided to send me home.
I was absolutely heartbroken. I had not meant for any of it to happen and now my chance at saving up for school seemed lost for good. I returned to Utah, depressed and unsure of myself.
Sweet 16
Sigh... The years of 2001/2002 were full of so many learning experiences.
I've always wondered why they call it "sweet" 16. According to Wikipedia:
Sweet sixteen parties mark a coming of age.
I often think of coming of age having more to do with puberty but in my case it was the age I was finally allowed to date, to drive, to get a job, basically gain a LOT more independence from my parents. Note: I did NOT have severe issues in my parental relationships, just a healthy appetite to grow up and be mature.
My parents had two cars available for me to learn in.
#1 1996 Ford Aerostar Van
#2 1985 Chevy Camaro
With Drivers License in hand I drove that van on many dates until one night while participating in the Manti Pageant...
That night, after the performance as everyone was loading up, some siblings from a family, that I informally adopted as mine, decided they would like to ride home with me to enjoy the air conditioning the van employed. I was unusually firm in making sure that everyone riding with me was wearing the seat-belts and we prayed for safety as we traveled home.
While driving through the canyons, my headlights approaching a corner, I heard in my mind, very clearly, a voice, saying
"Slow down."
I thought it strange, I was already going 5 miles below the 55mph speed limit because there were signs warning to take the corner a little slower. Strange or not, I rested my foot on the brake just in case. Without applying pressure the pedal went down further as if of it's own accord. I understood the voice had meant I REALLY needed to slow WAY down.
I began round the curve in the road at about 25mph. Then I saw it. There, beside the road on my passengers side, was an elk, nibbling the leaves from a young bush. The elk looked my way, standing stock still until we were nearly past it, and then it leapt. I slammed harder on the brakes. There was no avoiding it. The head crashed into the center of the wind shield. The shoulder wrapped around the passenger door, the rump caving in the back sliding door. Glass sprayed everywhere I held the steering wheel with all I had to keep from swerving, as both front tires popped, I could hear the metal grinding against the road. When we finally stopped sliding I could feel my self breathing heavily from the effort. Someone from the back seat asked if I was ok. I answered yes and asked if everyone else was alright. When everyone answered that they were ok, my first thought was of the people that were still on the road behind us that would be coming around that corner full speed. I opened my door and pushed the van out of the road, with only the assistance of angels.
Next, I told everyone to stay where they were in the van until I came back. There was no phone reception in the canyons and no way to call for help. I knew someone who lived a few miles up the road with a van I could use to get everyone home. Completely out of character, I ran the whole way. (I HATE running)
Once the adrenaline wore off, I had delivered the other kids safely to their home, I cried out the fear I had held in order to function, keeping the others safe. I slept but was troubled by dreams of everything that had happened.
The next day officials came to ask me what happened. I told them and the officers looked at each other then back at me. Then with amazement one of them explained the miracle, and their surprise at how my account matched up with their inspection of the scene. They explained that if I had been going the speed limit the impact of the elk would have sent the van into a roll, off the road into the ravine that was still high with snow run off. If we had landed upside down, we would likely have all drowned even if we had survived the roll. And then how I had pushed the van out of the road with a totaled engine, no tires...
To this day I marvel and praise the Lord. It was horrible still, but it could have been so much worse.
My poor dad had to depart with his beloved van. It was beyond repair.
Later that year I also ran the camero into the ground, it had exceeded the milage it was supposed to run and repairs were more costly than we valued the car. It was fun while it lasted, picking up young men in that car ;)
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