Bumpy Roads

We just got home from a weekend full of bumps. We started out four-wheeling with Grandpa Evans. We went up a beautiful canyon and ended up climbing a river bed. It was very bumpy and with Charlie on our backs, I was concerned that he was getting jostled around too much- you know the ever present shaken baby syndrome. So Three of us piled on one four wheeler and Adam tried to stand and absorb some of the bumps so that Charlie would not be as affected by them. We kept thinking and saying to ourselves, just a little further and I'm sure it will smoothout or we will find another way down so we don't have to return over all these bumps. Well, it just kept getting bumpier and bumpier and there was no other way down- we had to go right back over the bumps.

The next day, we were on the boat and decided to try family tubing. Charlie seemed to enjoy it, but once again was getting bumped pretty good so I attempted to shield him by holding him on my lap. Later, I sat in shock watching my three year-old get thrown into the air and giggle and sign requesting more bumps. Adam and I took a turn on the tube without kids which as Adam explained was kind of a death wish, just asking my Dad to try and knock us out. Our new tube is very stable and we hit some major bumps flying into the air, but not flipping over and not letting go. I tubed and tubed until I couldn't take it anymore and had to return to the boat with a headache. It's strange we go out recreating searching for bumps... the bigger the better.

All these bumps got me thinking about lifes bumps. We've had our fair share recently as have our families. We hang on and hang on as long as we can, hoping we won't fall off. But there comes a point where the bumps are just too great and we can't do it alone. We learn to rely on others and seek the help we need. This is one of my favorite poems and I think about it when things are hard. I heard it first from the gymnast Dianne Ellingson who was paralized in a gymnastics accident. This one's for you and you know who you are. Maybe we can't shield others from facing their bumps. We all have to go through our own, but we can support, encourage and empathize. The trials we go through help us understand others and know better how to comfort and console.

Don’t Quit
When things go wrong, as they sometimes will,

When the road you’re trudging seems all up hill,

When the funds are low and the debts are high,

And you want to smile, but you have to sigh,

When care is pressing you down a bit,

Rest if you must, but don’t you quit…

Sucess is failure turned inside out.

The silver tint of the clouds of doubt,

And you never can tell how close you are,

It may be near when it seems so far,

So stick to the fight when you’re hardest hit.

It’s when things seem worst that you must not quit.
~Author Unknown