Rescued

This afternoon my husband and I had some free time. We wanted to get out of the house and do something, but he was against grocery shopping and I was against hanging out at Cabela's. So we compromised and decided to go on a drive. I love going on rides, especially into Utah's gorgeous mountain canyons where I can soak in all the beautiful scenery. My husband also loves the canyons, but for a different reason...he likes to look for the ever present wildlife. We headed up a nearby canyon with our two youngest children. It had been snowing all day and the roads were a little snowy, but we drove slowly and there wasn't much traffic. I commented on the serene snow-covered mountain meadows and the quickly-flowing canyon stream. In no time at all, my husband had spotted a herd of elk part way up the mountain. We found a spot to pull over on the side of the road so he could get a better look. With the help of some binoculars, he quickly pointed out a big bull, a spike, and a dozen cows. As he handed the binocs to me so I could take a peek, he looked down at the console and said, “Oh, we’re almost out of gas.” Just a second later the engine sputtered and gasped and then everything was quiet.

It was then that I noticed that the wind was blowing, the light snow wasn’t looking so light anymore and we really weren’t dressed for a hike in this weather...not to mention we had two babies with us! Are you kidding me?? We giggled a little and then he commented on the angle of the vehicle making it so that the fuel we did have left must be out of reach. What? He tried the ignition…two seconds of hope and then quiet again. He was the first to reach for his cell phone.

“I don’t have any reception.”

I checked mine. One bar.

“Call my parents.”

They live in the mouth of the very canyon we were now stuck in…a little glimmer of hope. I dialed. It rang once, twice. Then the call was lost. I tried again. This time it only rang once. Call lost. Hmmm.

“The canyon walls must be blocking our signal.”

This little ride up the canyon was turning into more adventure than I had planned on. Before we had decided on our next move, my phone rang. It was my mother-in-law.

“Did you just call me?”

“Yes, can you come and rescue us?”

We managed to tell her where we were before the call was dropped yet again.

I have told you before that I hold this lady in very high esteem. Today, seeing her rescue vehicle pull up next to our fuel-starved touring car was as beautiful as any mountain scenery I hope to see anytime soon. We will have a full tank on our next adventure…guaranteed.