Locked out in rural Alaska
Locked Out Without Worry by Nancy Tankersley October 2015
“Let neither fear nor doubt overshadow your clear sense and calm trust, that the recognition of life
harmonious — as Life eternally is — can destroy any painful sense of, or belief in, that which Life is not.” This advice from Mary Baker Eddy’s book Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures (495:14–20) rang true during a situation I experienced last summer. My adult daughter Molly and I had been on a road trip to a remote part of Alaska. On our way back home to Anchorage one afternoon, we stopped to visit a friend and clip some willow branches on the outskirts of his
rural village for a fencing project. It appeared that he was away from home overnight, so I went ahead to collect the willows and then planned to drive the remaining four hours home. I asked my daughter to drive my car along the gravel road behind me and stop once in a while to pick up the willows. After about 10 minutes, she got out of the car to speak to me. And then said “Oh no Mom, I just locked the keys in the car!” So there we were, on an isolated road with infrequent traffic, with our cell phones, wallets, keys, clothes and other belongings locked inside the car. She was wearing shorts, and it was beginning to rain. The only neighbor I knew nearby had already left for his winter home in Arizona. I was aware of only a few other houses somewhere nearby. Humanly, it was a difficult, uncomfortable situation, fifteen miles from the nearest town that had commercial services.
But instead of experiencing anger, worry, fear, or anxiety, I just felt a sense of calm and wonder. Something like “I wonder how God is going to help us” went through my mind calmly. We stood there a minute, and then unexpectedly, a neighborhood woman drove up, who was running an errand for her husband. I explained our situation, and asked if there was a locksmith in the town 15 miles away. She responded no, but that she would go get Pete, a neighbor, to help.
Well, Pete was a commercial fisherman, with a very complete tool shop. Within 35 minutes, he had the car door unlocked and undamaged. We were on our way with hardly a delay. “Saint Pete” I called him afterwards. And I realized she was an “angel,” lovingly helping her husband exactly at the time that we also needed help.
I’m very grateful for my understanding of Christian Science and divine Love for the “clear sense and calm trust” in God’s law of harmony that can meet our everyday needs.
“Let neither fear nor doubt overshadow your clear sense and calm trust, that the recognition of life
harmonious — as Life eternally is — can destroy any painful sense of, or belief in, that which Life is not.” This advice from Mary Baker Eddy’s book Science and Health with Key to the Scriptures (495:14–20) rang true during a situation I experienced last summer. My adult daughter Molly and I had been on a road trip to a remote part of Alaska. On our way back home to Anchorage one afternoon, we stopped to visit a friend and clip some willow branches on the outskirts of his
rural village for a fencing project. It appeared that he was away from home overnight, so I went ahead to collect the willows and then planned to drive the remaining four hours home. I asked my daughter to drive my car along the gravel road behind me and stop once in a while to pick up the willows. After about 10 minutes, she got out of the car to speak to me. And then said “Oh no Mom, I just locked the keys in the car!” So there we were, on an isolated road with infrequent traffic, with our cell phones, wallets, keys, clothes and other belongings locked inside the car. She was wearing shorts, and it was beginning to rain. The only neighbor I knew nearby had already left for his winter home in Arizona. I was aware of only a few other houses somewhere nearby. Humanly, it was a difficult, uncomfortable situation, fifteen miles from the nearest town that had commercial services.
But instead of experiencing anger, worry, fear, or anxiety, I just felt a sense of calm and wonder. Something like “I wonder how God is going to help us” went through my mind calmly. We stood there a minute, and then unexpectedly, a neighborhood woman drove up, who was running an errand for her husband. I explained our situation, and asked if there was a locksmith in the town 15 miles away. She responded no, but that she would go get Pete, a neighbor, to help.
Well, Pete was a commercial fisherman, with a very complete tool shop. Within 35 minutes, he had the car door unlocked and undamaged. We were on our way with hardly a delay. “Saint Pete” I called him afterwards. And I realized she was an “angel,” lovingly helping her husband exactly at the time that we also needed help.
I’m very grateful for my understanding of Christian Science and divine Love for the “clear sense and calm trust” in God’s law of harmony that can meet our everyday needs.
posted by Unknown @ Monday, October 19, 2015
