Sawyer nodded, still looking at the ground. Marshall pressed his back against a tree, looking more confident than I had ever seen. Sawyer quietly explained, “Each of our parents headed up a search group. Sixteen people and two dogs have been out here searching for us.”
Sixteen. Wow. I read that when a sinner returns to God, there is joy in heaven. I had an exciting feeling that this was an earthly example of that. From the silence and thoughtful faces in our group, I guessed we were all thinking similar thoughts.
Sawyer sniffed. “I’m so sorry,” he plainly said.
Was Sawyer actually crying? Not that I blamed him. I was just surprised. Usually he was Mr. Calm and Collected – unless objects were being thrown at him or Ellie was being Yellie at him.
“No need to be sorry, Sawyer. We had a pretty great trek,” Marshall said.
Lydie and I voiced our gratefulness for his leadership and expertise. He smiled at each of us, but didn’t look proud of himself.
Ellie walked right up to Sawyer and without a word, took his hand. She held his gaze and eloquently said, “Sawyer Miles, you are an excellent guide. And you led us on a daring journey. You handled the dilemmas like a pro, and you took care of us all. Thank you for a perfect moonlit hike.”
We were all shocked. Was Ellie genuine? I thought so, but for a moment I feared that she was being sarcastic. But she was still holding his hand, and she looked sincere. I admired how she strategically used the word perfect, considering Sawyer’s recent announcement of her perfectionism. It was like antivenin for the tension in our group. And they were so cute holding hands like that. Sawyer’s face showed that her gracious speech had finally convinced him to stop belittling himself for this whole predicament.
Sawyer and Ellie were still holding hands when we heard Dad’s familiar, strong voice. “My girls! Oh, thank You, God! And my best friend’s sons!”
“Daddy!” Our three voices called as he raced to us. My faintness was forgotten as I stood up and dashed toward my dad’s open arms. I scarcely noticed the other three men in Dad’s team. One of them began making radio calls, while the other two began taking notes and asking Lydie about her leg.
Dad looked overwhelmed as he eyed each of us, pure gratefulness in his face. His hands were shaking, and he fell to his knees thanking God. Shakily standing back up, he wrapped his arms around me and buried his whiskered face in my hair, all sweaty and matted. I felt safe and comfortable in Daddy’s arms. Smelling his familiar scent gave me a sob. “Marlee,” he whispered, before pulling back to look at my face. My eyes were full of tears, but through the blur I saw his hand gently reach up to peel back a corner of my gauze and check on my forehead gash. I winced at his touch on my forehead, but he murmured that it looked clean. Planting a kiss on my cheek, he looked to my sisters.
Ellie was next in line and Dad obviously noticed, but did not say anything, as Sawyer dropped Ellie’s hand so she could throw her arms around Dad’s neck. He curled his arms around her waist, and as tears slid down my cheeks, I could see that Dad, too, was crying. After a hug, he held her face in his hands and gazed at her the way a new dad looks at his tiny baby. He turned to Sawyer and pulled his head into his shoulder for a man-type hug, and simultaneously gave Marshall a smile. “Your mom is going to breathe again when she sees you two,” Dad said before turning to Lydie.
Crouching down to Lydie, whose eyes looked more alert than they had all day, Dad let out a huffing sound of sadness mixed with gladness. He addressed the two members of the search party who were evaluating Lydie, “May I hold her?”
One of the guys, who evidently was a wilderness medic, shook his head sternly and said that Lydie needed to stay immobile for further evaluation. The other guy elbowed him and said, just as sternly, “He’s her father who didn’t know if he’d ever see her again. Let him hold her.”
Dad tenderly scooped her up and held her tight. “My Lydia Joy,” he whispered. Lydie relaxed into Dad’s chest, wearing the same relieved expression as Ellie. My heart was singing as I savored this moment of cheer.
Still holding Lydie, Dad murmured a prayer of thanksgiving. Seeming more composed now, he raised his head and grinned, “I brought food. You need to eat,” he said with a slow shake of his head as he carefully observed each of us. “Honey,” he addressed Lydie, “I need to set you down to get the food out of my pack.”
Dad squatted down and Sawyer helped ease Lydie back onto the stretcher. “Nice work, Miles,” Dad nodded to Sawyer. “Your stretcher is textbook-worthy.” The medics agreed that it was the ideal setup for the situation. They said it had been ‘well implemented.’ Sawyer’s eyes shone from the compliment. The medics continued applying pressure to Lydie’s leg and asking her pain level when they held her leg in various positions.
The third man on the rescue team, who had been on the radio all the while, turned to me and began asking about my forehead. As he put on a pair of rubber gloves, Sawyer joined us and helped me answer the questions, especially about how the gash had been treated up to this point. Marshall, Ellie and Sawyer were each given short evaluations from the medics as well, but most of the attention was on Lydie.
Dad efficiently whipped up some trail pizzas for us, explaining that our bodies desperately needed the sodium before we could continue, even though we were practically at the ranger station. All the while, he just kept gazing at each of us girls, whispering our names with pride.
Over the next few minutes, Dad explained that radio calls had gone out to the other three rescue teams to alert them that we had been found. The search was called off, and all the rescuers would meet at the ranger station. Our four parents, four rangers, and eight volunteers from the mountainous community had helped to find us.
Finally, one of the men with Dad spoke up in an authoritative voice, introducing himself as Eric. “Typically the groups we rescue do not possess adequate gear or knowledge. From what I have seen of you five, I am highly impressed with your level of skill in the mountains.”
Dad cut in with a shrug and a grin, “They take after Caleb and me.” We snickered.
Eric smiled, but returned his attention to us kids. “Please tell me how you managed so well in this environment and under these circumstances.” With an exaggerated look toward the peak in the background, he added somberly, “Most avalanche survivors at this elevation would likely have suffered severe hypothermia overnight and never made it down the mountain.”
Whoa! Seriously? MOST people would have DIED? I had a feeling it would take a long time for the weight of that fact to sink in. How would I ever thank God enough for rescuing us? Glancing at our group, I realized that Sawyer and Ellie were the only ones who had considered how close to a catastrophe we had been. We three youngest kids looked shocked and horrified; Sawyer and Ellie looked solemn.
My hands were trembling now. Probably due to the overwhelming emotion of being with Dad, rescued and ready to eat. And due to learning that statistically we were pretty much goners.
Sawyer was the first to speak up. “Sir, I mean, Mr. Eric, we believe it is a miracle that we made it through the avalanche. Being raised by professional backpackers certainly gave us an advantage in regards to experience and being equipped with the appropriate gear. But, through it all, God protected us.”
Well said, Sawyer, I thought. Eric thoughtfully rubbed his chin and told Sawyer to remember what he had just said, as he might be asked to report to the newspaper, and probably the news. Sawyer nodded.
“My turn to ask a question,” Sawyer said. All heads turned to him. “How did you find us?”
Dad grinned, and the other three guys raised their eyebrows, as if surprised that Sawyer had to ask.
Eric answered first, “Well, naturally we began the search by tracking your satellite messenger. Up to that point, nobody even knew the avalanche had occurred on the peak, except you, of course. When we realized it was buried in the snow, we initially feared the worst.” Dad lowered his head. Eric continued, “But our dogs insisted on tracking lower. So we sent two groups lower and sent two groups back toward the direction you came the last night you were with your parents, just to cover all the bases. Amazingly the lower search teams saw your message in the snow, along with the remains of a snow shelter and fire.”
“Seeing that stoked my hope,” Dad quietly said.
Suddenly I heard Caleb’s voice bellow out, “They’re here?”
“We’re here, Dad!” Marshall called as he jogged toward the direction of his dad’s voice. When they met, Caleb gripped Marshall, who stood six inches shorter than his dad’s tall frame, into a hug that looked like it would have forced all the air of Marshall’s lungs. Marshall ducked his head into his dad’s chest and squeezed his eyes shut. I walked to Dad, who was finishing up with the first pizza. Since he could only make one pizza at a time, he began to cut the finished one into five pieces which he passed out to us. I was hungry enough to swallow my slice whole, but I knew that eating slowly at first would help us to not get sick. Obviously I wasn’t the only one this hungry. I glanced around and saw that the boys had pretty much swallowed their slices in a bite. Okay then. I dove in, and wow, it tasted good. All three bites.
Squatted by his stove, Dad squeezed another serving of crust batter out of a bag onto the round six-inch pan above the flame. He beamed up at me and wrapped an arm around my knees. I looked up and watched Sawyer meet his dad and join the embrace. Seeing their reunion sparked my emotions again, and I collapsed into my dad’s strong arms. “Honey, honey, we’re together now. And we’ll be with your mom within two hours. Her group and Julia’s group are hiking to us right now. Marlee, honey, I’m here,” Dad hushed me. Hearing his voice after the past two days was the best music ever. He quickly spread sauce and cheese on the crust and set the lid on the pan.
A few minutes later he lifted the lid and slid his spatula under the crust, lifting the pizza onto a plate. He cut it and stood to distribute more pieces of pizza to each of us kids. We sat in a circle on the trail, Caleb asked a quick blessing (better late than never), and we continued to eat like hungry bears in the spring. Meanwhile Caleb prepared electrolyte-laden water bottles for us, which we gulped down easily.
Eric tentatively asked if we felt ready to hike the remaining tenth of a mile to the ranger station to meet our moms. We all nodded and Ellie piped, “This should be nothing now that we ate!”
Everybody laughed, and Dad, Caleb, Eric and one of the other rescuers each rushed to a corner to lift Lydie with ease. Somehow seeing our rescuers, even Dad and Caleb, ready to carry Lydie the remainder of the distance made me feel weird. It just wasn’t right. As if echoing my thoughts, Sawyer suddenly commanded, “Wait!” Everyone stopped. Sawyer went on, “We should carry Lydie on the homestretch. We evacuated her this far, let’s finish strong – finish as the group we started.”
Dad and Caleb looked at us kids. Marshall, Ellie, Sawyer and I exchanged looks. Sure it would be easier to accept their help, but I agreed with Sawyer. Lydie cheerily voiced, “I’d offer to walk myself, but–”
“You will be carried, young lady,” the main medic announced. Lydie giggled and nodded.
“I’m in,” Marshall announced.
Ellie stepped toward Lydie’s stretcher, “I agree.” Dad and Caleb looked surprised that Ellie agreed with Sawyer, and they began looking back and forth between Sawyer and Ellie, who blushed. She rolled her eyes and quickly stammered, “This doesn’t mean you’re right, Sawyer. It just means that, whatever, I’m in, too.”
Sawyer grinned at Ellie, and I returned to my corner of the stretcher. Dad and Caleb backed up and agreed, even though they were clearly itching to help. The other six men also allowed us to carry her, although the lead wilderness medic looked concerned.
“That’s the spirit, boys!” Caleb cheered his sons. “And girls!” he added with a grin at Ellie and me. As we once again found our rhythm, I felt at ease. By now, my shoulders were numb to the pressure of the rope, and my legs were accustomed to the weight. Not appreciative of the weight, but used to it. It was not comfortable; but somehow, just knowing we were rescued and so close allowed me to ignore the physical discomforts and enjoy what we five kids had accomplished out in the wild mountains.
The sun warmed my face, and I could hear Dad’s voice just a few feet behind me. Such simple, ordinary parts of life seemed so nurturing in light of the previous two days. I wondered why I had never before taken such delight in Dad’s voice – or fully noticed how the sun makes nature glow. This day had turned out to be extra beautiful, especially when I viewed it through a rejuvenated perspective.
13
I sank into Mom’s loving embrace and decided to memorize the moment and remember it forever. I have a jar at home where I keep slips of paper with special memories written. This moment, and the moment when I hugged Dad, would for sure be going in the jar. So would the sight of the peak that we almost made it to as it shone in the moonlight and the shooting star!
Mom was so overjoyed and overwhelmed with two days’ worth of emotions that she was speechless. Her hug and tears on my hair said enough. After our grand reunion, Lydie was taken to the closest clinic where the doctor confirmed that there was a break in one of the bones of her lower left leg. He praised the splint and evacuation, and said that she could have needed surgery. However, since her leg had been kept so stable, the doctor was able to reset her leg in the office, and he was confident it would heal well. I’d say that was yet another miracle, without a doubt!
After waiting at the clinic a couple hours for observation, all nine of us went to a restaurant. We weren’t showered or even in clean clothes, but we eagerly sat down at the local Mexican restaurant, per Marshall’s pleas, as if we were royalty.
Lydie’s crutches were propped against the wall, we were all in our hiking boots, and our sweat-matted hair was pretty messy. Apparently we stood out, and either we spoke loudly or our story had gained some local fame, because before our food arrived a newspaper reporter politely asked if he could interview us for the local paper.
Sawyer and Ellie did most of the talking to the journalist. Mom put one arm around Lydie and her other arm around me and whispered how grateful she was to have us back. Marshall had asked the waitress if he could keep looking at a menu even after we ordered. He needed inspiration to dream, he had said. Everyone laughed, but we kids laughed the hardest about his love for Mexican food.
