The saying ‘timing is everything’ held true for one of us once again…
Two Fridays ago, Beth drove home from work in the middle of a raging late afternoon thunderstorm; visibility was so poor she was unable to see a couple of feet beyond the windshield. Several times she pulled over to wait it out; a trip that normally required 30-35 minutes took more than twice as long. She finally made it to the house, knotted up with tension but clearly relieved, hands aching from the white-knuckle death grip she had on her steering wheel as she navigated the torrential downpour.
We flipped on the news to catch a current weather update and received a shock: the roof over the area of the mall she had just departed from collapsed during the storm. Part of the parking deck below that section caved in from the weight of the water and ensuing structural damage. Adjacent parking lots and nearby roads were flooded as well… Over three inches of rain fell on that side of Charlotte in less than an hour.
Wow.
Had Beth been delayed ten minutes in leaving her job, she would have been inside, about twenty steps from where the roof fell in. Five minutes longer and her compact car could have been caught up in one of the flooded streets. Had she been scheduled for a closing shift, her car would have been under the rubble of the parking deck.
Needless to say, Beth was freaked out and worried about her coworkers’ safety. Thankfully, no one was injured. As the news reports continued, the damage estimates grew; so did her concern about being out of work for an extended period…
As it turned out, her employer was only closed for four days. The structural integrity of the mall was inspected and confirmed to be safe; things were cleaned up, dried out and that store reopened on Wednesday.
It could have been far more serious and involved; the upcoming weekend is back-to-school tax free weekend. What if it happened then, when Southpark stores will likely be packed full of parents and children?
How often do we stop to consider the difference a few minutes or a few days can make? Even a split-second can change everything…
I would suggest that we do, but usually in the context of being delayed, thereby hindered or inconvenienced… What about the times when we avoid a calamity or trouble of some sort? I think not nearly as much as we should…
I wasn’t thrilled with Beth’s decision to drive through the storm, but I’m extremely grateful things worked out as they did, because I’m not sure I could handle anything happening to one of my kids right now…
Wishing you many blessings, sunshine and hope…tg
Tammy will update her blog on Mondays and Thursdays
