Saturday, May 15, 2010

a cuss word saved my daughter's life

before i tell my scandalous story, i have to give vickie at sandflat farms
all the credit for my disclaimers.  she penned a 'tail' about a vicious vole
that still makes me chuckle.

please be advised that you will encounter some graphic language in my
tale today, so please have the kiddies move away from the computer.  if
you are squeamish, sunday schoolish, or school marmish, you might
want to go with them.

we had just finished a delicious feast of mexican enchiladas, all eight
children were safely seat belted into my stretch suburban, and i was
checking one more time in the rear view mirror before backing out of
the parking lot.

laughter and happy chatter filled the car, as i caught a glimpse of four
year old hailey in the very back row.  she was choking on one of the
after dinner mints.

"ok, everybody out!"  i couldn't have possibly reached her without
crushing the four little bodies in the middle row of seats.

no one even heard me.  they just kept giggling and squealing, and i
felt panic rising in my throat.

"i mean it, get out!"  again, no response.

by now, i was out and opening the back seat door.

"get out of the damn car!!!"   seven pairs of little jaws dropped open
and legs scampered out just in time for me to pull hailey over the
seat and perform the heimlich maneuver on her.

out popped the mint, and before i could say, "thank you, Lord,"
five little voices said, "mom, you said a bad word!"  i'm sure they
were enjoying cheerful visions of soap in my mouth.

here's the moral of the story:  because my children had never heard
me use coarse language,  the shock of that cuss word saved my baby
girl's life.

love,
lea

"let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that
which is good to the use of edifying . . ."   (or saving lives :)
ephesians 4:29

38 comments:

kate said...

i also enjoy saving my "blue language" for the most needful of moments. i feel sorry for people that cuss all of the time, because then when they need it most, their words means almost nothing. thank you for sharing :)

Rebecca Nelson said...

Oh....hahahahah

I LOVE THIS!

Boy do I have a story I could share with you about saying a single bad word and how it came back to bite me on the bumm.

I'll save it for a post...sometime in the DISTANT, VERY DISTANT future!

SWEET!

xoRebecca

Rosie said...

Oh Lea, it is so scary when we know our little ones are in harms way and we can't help them... Good thing your vocabulary doesn't usually include that particular word...and that your life saving skills are "par excellence"...you know, that always worried me when my sweet babies, were young...we hope we will have a cool head, and not panic, but you never know. Fortunately my babies, survived childhood, are now young adults.
He is Good...

You paint a crazy picture... if very bored, this might be quite entertaining to see what story the neighbors might come up with...or better yet, what Hans will say...and what a great "blog post"...OK,{sinister giggling...and my sweet husband is looking at me strangely, because of it}... now you have to do it...smile on and keep everyone guessing...Rosie

Elizabeth Mahlou said...

Neat story.

Farm Girl said...

That is such a sweet story, it made me laugh too. I can just imagine the shocked look on the kids faces. Yep, that was so cute.

Natasha in Oz said...

Thank God you were able to help her! That must have been a very scary moment for you both.

By the way, I actually didn't know what the word cuss was until I watched the movie Fabulous Mr Fox! We don't tend to use that expression over here.

I am so glad that you are all OK and that everything turned out for the best.

Take care and best wishes,
Natasha.

Anonymous said...

I can just see those little jaws drop open!
I hope you have a wonderful Sunday.

Julie@beingRUBY said...

Hi Lea
Well.. firstly, I don't think i realised you had 8 kids!! wow.. or maybe i did and my memory is not what it used to be.. I've got a good visual image of all the kids nattering away and then WHAM .. mum delivers the deal breaker.. hahaah.. sort of funny.. now!.. but of course not funny at the time...

Well you are right about overuse.. loses it's impact.. a bit like the boy who called wolf!!! Have a great day xxx Julie

gigi said...

Cute story!! The shock of it all :)

People Who Know Me Would Say: said...

Scary, but great story.

Your use of salty language is quite tame compared to what I would have said in that circumstance! :)

Dawn said...

Could this be similar to the shock of Jesus asking the man he healed at the pool of Bethesda to carry his mat and walk on the Sabbath?

Praise God for the safety of your precious little one and your ability to think of words that are off-limits at such a time as this.

Many blessings.

Anonymous said...

My parents did the same thing...saving the forbidden words until they needed to make a point. I don't think I'll ever forget the first time they swore in front of me :)

A Tale of Two Cities said...

Wow! What a terrifying moment that must have been. Seems like this was the "time and the season" for effectiveness and I think in your own astonishing way, you accomplished just what was needed!

Have a blessed Sunday....
Debi

Michelle said...

And praise the Lord for rear view mirrors!

http://bitsandpieces-sonja.blogspot.com/ said...

shocking... just shocking!!

a 'word fitly spoken'... :)

~*~ saskia ~*~ said...

Scary and sweet, Lea. Hugs for a great new week! xx

Unknown said...

OH MY HECK, I love that story and it really is a good example of when and when NOT to use "such talk", as my grandmother used to call it.

Aside....scary situation. I remember my eldest son choking on a piece of meat once when he was little and he came running to me with such panic on his face. I actually stuck my finger down his throat and pulled it out. OH how he cried!

Very good post as always.

Vee said...

Proving once again that God can use anything for good. You're a brave gal to share this story and I'm glad that you did. I, too, have a few stories to tell about blue language that make me laugh whenever I recall them...laughter being good for the spirit and all. ;D

I Love Pretty Little Things said...

Sometimes, especially in life or death situations, you have to do or say whatever it takes...

Char said...

What a great story. Sometimes a gals gotta do what a gals gotta do. So glad this had a happy ending, Char

Janean said...

first, PTL your baby is fine. secondly, what a testimony of a woman with God's Spirit in control of her tongue. great story that i'm sure many of us will be sharing in the next several weeks with...uh...well...those who may benefit from this real life lesson!


hugs.

Debbie Petras said...

Well, you certainly got their attention and thank God for that (whatever it took). I'm glad that your little girl is OK.

Susan B said...

So thankful you were able to help your daughter! What a scary moment it must have been. Thank you for sharing your story. I hope you all have a blessed week! :)

Sue said...

Lea, Just enjoyed this story so much, Since I panic easily I do not know what I would have said. So glad she was alright. I always warned our grandchildren about these mints. Thanks for sharing.
Hugs,
Sue

Brittany Ann said...

This is the most wonderful, hysterical, lesson and story! I want to tell this one to my students!

carissa said...

bahahaha.

koralee said...

Great story today...I can just see the reaction..my children would have responded the same way. xoxo

Liz Sarno said...

Hahaha! That is funny! I can just picture it in my head!:)

Southern Lady said...

What a scary situation! I used that word one time with my oldest child in a very stressful situation. I don't know who it shocked the most, her, me, or my husband who still mentions it once in a while. Carla

Unknown said...

Oh, that's funny (and just a bit scary!) But just think, if you cursed all the time, this word would have meant nothing at all to them, so that's a really good thing!

Unknown said...

What a frightening thing to see your baby choking. Thank God you noticed that, and that you got to her in time. Cuss or not, I would have done the same thing. I can just see the faces of the other children.

Karen

Emily said...

Oh, that is too funny. Just yesterday I was caught with a dirty mouth...however, no lives were saved. My husband and I are removing 3 layers of old wallpaper in our 11 year old's bedroom. We peel off the top layer and then have to spray down the rest with a vinegar and water mixture to get it off. Well hubby likes to "pretend" to spray the girls with the bottle. Well he tried it on me and actually pulled the trigger and sprayed my hair with smelly vinegar water! Before I know it, "What the HELL!" comes spewing out of my mouth. My 9 year old was downstairs and heard my naughtiness. When I came downstairs she says..."Mommy, do we need to get the soap out?!"

Auntie Cake said...

So glad you were able to get the candy out. Your story reminds me of a time when my kids and I were joking around, the kids were making fun of me so I jokingly told them to "shut up" a word which I never use. The next day my youngest son walks into church and I swear he yelled it, but he said, "My mom said a swear word!" That will teach me!
Kate

Thoughts on Life and Millinery. said...

Well...the word 'damnation" is in the KJV Bible right? I'm just not sure that a car has a soul which is subject to damnation.

Perhaps you had seen one too many episodes of "My Mother The Car" growing up? Was your family concerned about "Mother's" place in eternity?

(oh yeah...lots of folks were praying about that one way back when...)

Unknown said...

Lea! I am laughing so hard. I'll bet that is the only time of your life you ever did that!

Unknown said...

Lea! I am laughing so hard. I'll bet that is the only time of your life you ever did that!

Unknown said...

Lea! I am laughing so hard. I'll bet that is the only time of your life you ever did that!

Unknown said...

Lea! I am laughing so hard. I'll bet that is the only time of your life you ever did that!