Going to the Cabin Alone

Thunk!  Thunk!  Thunk!  It took a second for the weird noise to register in my mind.  It was already noisy in the old car; the windows were down, the kids were singing, and driving over a rocky dirt road was noisy no matter what;  but this sound was different.  "Could I have a flat tire?" I wondered incredulously.

Carefully I slowed the car down and pulled as far to the side of the road as I could.  That wasn't very far.  Colcord Road was just a narrow, two lane strip of dirt and rocks, bordered on both sides with a drainage dip designed to carry the monsoon rains away from the road.  Beyond that ponderosa pines, alligator juniper, and scrub oak covered hills, valleys, and meadows; cool and inviting and lonely.

"Wouldn't you know we'd have a flat tire now," I spoke aloud, half in dismay and half in anticipation.  This was the very first time I had taken my children up to the cabin alone, and I was really enjoying the adventure.  All my life I'd imagined myself a pioneer woman, able to tackle whatever hardships fate threw my way, and it looked like I was going to get to prove myself right at the start of our vacation.

The kids tumbled out of the car with me, and we surveyed the flat tire on the back of our old, dusty brown station wagon.  "It looks like a rock went through it," Russell told me knowingly.  He was five-and-a-half years old, so he should know.

"Probably so," I agreed.  I'd had no more experience with flat tires than he had, but I'd watched dad change a lot of them while I was growing up.  "OK.  Lets move this stuff out of the back so I can get to the spare tire."

Linnea, Holly, Russell and Alyssa helped me move bags and suitcases around until I found the tire, jack, and an old blanket to lay on the ground.  I put Stephen on that, since it was too hot to leave him in the car. He was only ten months old so he couldn't run around with the other kids.

"Stay close by," I told them as I knelt beside the flat tire, trying to find a good place to set up the jack.  "Linnea, please keep an eye on Alyssa, and Holly, you watch out for Stephen." 

It took almost an hour, but I figured out how to jack up the car, unscrew the bolts, pull off the old tire, and put on the spare, all without too many problems.  I was actually pretty proud of myself. 

When the bolts seemed tight enough I dumped the flat tire on top of everything in the back of the car, (why bother putting it away when we'd be to the cabin shortly and have to unpack everything again anyway?)  threw the dusty old blanket on top, called the kids to get back in, and we started on down the road to the cabin.  Not a single person had passed us the whole time we'd been stopped, but that wasn't surprising.  It was the middle of the day, and a Monday.  Weekend vacationers had already gone home, so I hadn't expected to see anyone..

We got to the cabin about 45 minutes later.  It felt so good to unlock the front gate, drive in, and watch the kids tumble out of the car.  I was home!  How I loved being at the cabin.  It was like a weight lifted off my chest and I could breath again, although I hadn't realized that I'd been suffocating until I got there. 

It seemed like forever since I'd been up to the cabin.  Last summer mom and dad and my sisters and their kids had come up with me for a week while our husbands stayed home and worked.  I'd felt guilty leaving Sheldon behind, but he never seemed to have time to do anything with us, anyway.  This summer I had tried and tried to find a time when he could come up to the cabin, but he always had something else he wanted to do.  Finally, I'd given up and told him I was going with or without him.  He didn't care.

My parents and little sisters were on a trip, and my married sisters couldn't get away, but I decided I was going anyway.  My folk's were coming home at the end of the week, so they made arrangements to stop at the cabin on their way home. Until then the kids and I would be all by ourselves.  It was a little scary, but not enough to stop me.  Besides the flat tire, we didn't have a bit of trouble.  I drove through the creek without getting stuck, I was able to get the well primed and started without any problem, and there were not even any snakes or mice at the cabin to scare us.  We were doing good! 

The first night was a little spooky once it got dark and quiet, but  I gathered all the kids onto one bed and we read books until they were ready to go to sleep.  After I tucked them in I was so sleepy that I went right to bed.  That was the hardest night, and after that we weren't even scared.  It was just a delightful week.

Mom and dad got there late Friday evening.  We were so glad to see them!  Saturday we all drove into Young  to find a laundromat so mom could do laundry for Sunday.  We found a tiny little place with two washing machines and dryers.  Mom and my little sisters kept the kids with them while  Dad and I took the flat tire to a garage to get it fixed.  It had a big hole in it, Russell had been right about the rock, so they couldn't patch it.  Luckily, they sold used tires and I was able to find one the right size that didn't cost too much money.  By the time we got back to the laundromat mom was about done. There were puddles of stagnant water standing all around the tiny building, and mosquitoes everywhere.  Everyone got bit, and I counted at least eight red bites on poor little Stephen's arms and face, but a Popsicle from the general store made them feel better.

We went to church in Young the following day, then came home on Monday.  It had been a delightful week, and it was hard to leave, but I made up my mind that I wouldn't wait so long in between trips anymore.

"Next summer,"  I thought, "If Sheldon doesn't want to make the time to take us up to the cabin, then I'll do it myself."  I had no idea how prophetic that thought actually was.