Not How I'd Planned my Summer Vacation

 If you have been following my blog, you know I had most unfortunate beginning to my "writer's retreat" for one day in Mt. Pleasant, on Shem Creek.  Here is how my summer vacation began: The flat tire took most of my first evening on vacation, and 3 hours the next morning waiting for the tow truck, Then there was the uncertainty of repair time at the shop. And remember, I was only there the one day and overnight. Crushed! I realized I needed to stay another day. Who knew when (if) the car would be fixed? The hotel was sold out, but scrounged up a room for me. The last one. Sadly, I knew yesterday morning would not be spent kayaking with dolphin, but sitting in a car repair shop.

Fortunately, I am an early riser, and was up at 5 a.m. yesterday.  Breakfasted on my hotel balcony, watching the sun rise, and then scurried out to launch my kayak. I had two hours at least before any car repair shop would open.
I headed up Shem Creek having been told the likelihood of seeing manatees was greater upstream. I didn't see any manatees, but it was lovely.

I kayaked two hours, and then returned to wait for the tow truck to tow my car with the flat tire to a shop a mile away. And waited. And waited. Fortunately, the hotel allowed me to change my room early, and moved me over so I could sit on the lovely balcony while waiting. Finally, I got towed to the car shop, who had been prepped by an angel from the day before not to charge me too much since it was a valve, not a bad tire. (For that story, read yesterday's blog. Anyone needed taxi or limo service in the Charleston area should call Bill at Atlantic Smile Taxi/Limo 843-303-5555. Selfless and good people) I told the car repair shop that biking to find food was my agenda now, and they could call me when the car was ready. I biked in surprising good spirits in the 100 degree heat. This is a picture of me on my bike. It doesn't show the sweat pouring off of me, or the stench...which is a good thing.

I found a little cafe, with not a customer inside. My kind of place! Here is what they served me: grilled romaine lettuce with grilled shrimp and homemade Cesar dressing. It was scrumpdidiliumptious.

I biked back to the car shop. The lug bolt was stripped so they had to cut off the lug bolt, find and buy a new one, fix the broken tire valve, and remount the tire. I cringed. What do you think the bill for those 3 hours work would be? $29. I kid you not. If you are ever broken down in or near Charleston, Visit Zip's Kar Kare Inc. (zippskarkare@aol.com). The lady before me was charged $10 for her vacation car repair. You don't believe in angels? Visit Zip's Kar Kare.

I devised a new and (if I do say so myself) clever phone mount for my kayak so I could videotape more easily. Here it is:

I attached a gorilla pod to the top of my kayak (google it...has bendable arms and attaches cameras to any surface). It gripped my phone, and I was able to video tape much more quickly and easily, since the phone was now mounted right in front of me on my bow. That's how I captured the video of these dolphins which were right under my boat.

 

As I launched my kayak after the car ordeal was ended, and it was now mid afternoon, I asked the people who own a kayak tour service next door to my hotel where to find manatees. They told me to head to the end of Shem Creek, across the bay to Bird Island ( you can't miss it...thousands of roosting birds, and might I add, pooping birds...the odor can knock you over....) Maybe I would find manatee there, though they warned me- manatee are shy and not easily found. Not five minutes after launching, look what I found!

Manatees!!!!! And due to my (clever) gorilla pod mount of my iPhone, I even captured the rare moment on video. Double back pat. On to bird island. Maybe there would be more manatee. Bird island is fun because it is full of noisy birds roosting.

On my way back to the hotel, I saw a creature in the shadows of a boat that I thought was a manatee. I stopped paddling and watched. It raised its head above water again. It was yellow orange, with a beak like a parrot. Could this be????? I had seen pictures of sea turtles, but never a live sea turtle. I watched him quite a while. No doubt. When I returned to my launch site, I asked the experts there if there were sea turtles in Shem Creek. In the past two years, there had been sightings! Rare, but validated!

I spent the last two hours of five hours kayaking sitting in the midst of pods of dolphins. They were close enough to touch, though that one dream still eluded me. I reached out, and came within millimeters of touching one as it went under my boat. Tomorrow is another day. I'd been up and out for twelve hours, sweating and exerting myself in 100 degree heat when I finally returned to my room, and my first shower. Ahhh! Called next door to a restaurant for dinner to go, and sat on my balcony, eating, and watching dolphin cavorting below.

I am perplexed. I thought a flat tire on vacation was a terrible calamity. But look what it led to!! Angels on earth materializing before me, manatees, sea turtles, dolphins, wind-caressed balconies, and delight. Had I not had the flat tire, I would have gone home and missed all of that! It wasn't at all how I had planned my little summer vacation. How incredibly gracious and loving of God to shower me with such kindness. The next time calamity strikes, I think I may be more inclined to look for the blessing behind it.

While sitting on the balcony watching the sun set, I received two texts from women I counsel who chose life for their baby over abortion. One said the agency I had sent her to to mediate (in my mind, illegal) job termination due to pregnancy was handling everything -- lawyer fees, mediation, and as I had suspected, righting a terrible wrong done to her. Another just wanted to say Hi. She had had a crisis of strength a couple days ago and asked me to send her bible verses. I did. The crisis was dampened, and now she says all is well. She needed a little shoring up, to know she wasn't alone. But as I received the text last night, while sitting on the balcony, she just wanted to know how I was doing. I am blessed, flat tire and all, I told her. I may be on this little vacation alone...but I am never ALONE, praise God.
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Romans 8:28 

And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are called according to his purpose.

2 Corinthians 12:8-10

Three times I pleaded with the Lord about this, that it should leave me. But he said to me, “My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly of my weaknesses, so that the power of Christ may rest upon me. For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.