God's protection for my family (updated)

Just last week, my parents were clearing the shelves in the guest room, and found some of my files and papers from my teaching days, and also a composition book from my student days. I discovered this composition that i wrote in March 1984 about what happened to my family one day at the end of February 1983.

I'll just have it shown to you in it's entirety without (much) editing (er... had to edit because of slight melodrama...to my own 'horror'...cringe cringe... i was only in my teens at that time lah!! on the other hand, i could have been more affected by the accident at that time, haha excuses excuses.)

They were driving along a highway at Bukit Timah at around half past five in a new car, Corolla GT 1300 cc. It was just two days old. They were on the way home after visiting Kong Kong and Ah Ma. There was a jam because it was after office peak hour traffic.

The people in the car were hot and bothered although it was air-conditioned. Baby D, just 6 weeks old at that time, was perspiring profusely and crying in mummy's arms in the back seat. In order to better get the cool air from the air-conditioner, she moved to the centre. Little did she know, this action saved her life, and baby D's.

Papa was impatient at not moving forward. Brother was sleeping on the front seat despite the deafening cries of the baby. I was missing from the car as i was in school.

At last the traffic eased. Out of the corner of his eye, Papa saw a lorry crash into a bus . It was just on the right of them. He woke up Brother. At the very next moment, the lorry, in trying to avoid the bus, swerved to the left. Their car was on its' left. The impact brought the car onto the road divider. It was all so sudden.

Everyone in the car screamed. Then, everything was quiet. They got out of the car slowly, as if still in a daze. On discovering the baby's head wet with blood, they knelt down on the pavement to thank God for protecting them and asked for mercy from God regarding Baby's condition.

A passerby provided a dirty rag to cover the wound on mother's arm, but she was not even aware of any pain because of her anxiety over Baby's supposed head wound. Several other passers by began to reprimand the lorry driver. He jumped out of his seat and started to give excuses. He did not even apologise.

The traffic on the highway came to a halt on the opposite lane because of the accident.

Four pilots in a Datsun offered to bring my family to the nearest hospital. While in the hospital, all the procedures were done by the helpful pilots as my family was still shaken by their experience.

Baby and Mummy were taken into the x-ray room. The results showed that Baby's head was fine, but mother's left arm was fractured. The flesh where the fracture was, was hanging loose from the bone. Her arm would take half a year to regain its use. Both mother and child were hospitalised. They wanted to observe Baby, and Mummy's arm needed to be operated on. Papa and Brother escaped with a few cuts and scratches. Baby suffered slightly from post-accident trauma, reacting in fear and tears and cries to loud noises, perhaps up to a year or more...

While all this was going on, i came home, bursting with news of the day for my family, but no one was home. That seldom happened. It was already 7pm. I sensed something was wrong. A while later, the telephone rang (this was before mobile phones were common). I answered it, recognising my brother's voice at once although it sounded so different from his lively, high-pitched (this was before puberty) voice. He told me what happened in between sobs.

I hung up the phone when the three minutes were up (he called from a public phone). There had been no time for me to ask him questions. I burst into tears, wishing i was at the hospital. I had gathered from the bits and pieces of information that Baby's head was injured, and i was so afraid he would die. I sat down at my desk. If my brothers or parents were to die...oh how i hated the lorry driver. Why had it happened to my family? Questions that received no answers kept entering my head. I became very restless.

The stillness of the house was too much for me. It held suspense, and perhaps disaster. I took the keys, some money and went down to take a taxi to the hospital.

When i reached the hospital, i found, to my great relief, that no one was near the brink of death.

The investigating traffic police officer said that my family was just lucky to have had escaped death. I knew it was not luck. It was God's providence and protection. His mercies endure through all generation.

Note 1: Baby is now a fine young man and in bible school. Brother is happily married to a beautiful woman, and both have good jobs and serve actively in church. My parents, now retired (or re-fired as papa always says), hale and hearty, have been to various nations to travel and also serve the Lord. I'm so glad that God loves and protects.

Note 2: We invited the four pilots for a family thanksgiving soon after the accident, but have since lost contact. They were not believers at that time. It had always been our desire that they came to know the Lord.

Note 3: The 2-day old car had to be scrapped because it was so badly damaged - the back left door completely caved in almost to the centre of the back seat. We got a new car weeks later.

Afternote 1: If i had been in the car, there would have been less space in the back seat, and mum with baby may not have moved to the centre. Well, we won't go down that path because we actually didn't.

Afternote 2: The rest of the family had to play a larger role in taking care of Baby as mum could not use her left arm. Praise God we found a nanny in the same block.

Afternote 3: Kong Kong said that Baby must have a call upon his life... we shall see...