Three years ago today an inexplicable thing happened. A dad, a mom, their two children and unborn baby girl survived the plane crash that killed my dad, who was piloting, and Julie Walker, a Native leader whom my dad knew most of his life. She was a mom, teacher, wife, leader, so many things to the community of Anvik, and to the Natives of Alaska. Our daddy was so many things to us. Donnie and Rosie were new teachers to Anvik, a community of about 80, that year. Their two children were eight and ten. I guess grateful only begins to describe my mood today. I cant understand why things turned out the way they did that day. I became obsessed, probably clinically so, over every minute detail of what happened, and yet still with everything that went wrong that day, the weather, the trauma, the damage, this family of five remained intact and alive over-nighting injured on an Alaskan mountain in horrid conditions. When I finally let go of the why and the how, I became...grateful. Over the past three years I have grown so much as a person. I have put love and kindness and acceptance first. I have learned that through these acts I can and have impacted lives. I continue to grow my relationship with God, who for no other reason but grace, saved the Evans Family...and me. In this I find the greatest peace. Thanks be to God.
Posted on: Thu, 14 Aug 2014 02:59:24 +0000