Sometimes things happen that you feel scared out of your wits and you shake with fear for your life or your loved ones. These two things happened to me and my husband decades ago. I still remember the fear that I felt.
Brave husbands save their families
I want to write about two scary things that happened to my family and me. One was in 1963. We were living in the Dellview neighborhood in San Antonio. We had gone to church that morning had gone home. As we drove down the street to our house, we saw a pickup truck backed in our driveway, near the front door and the door was standing open. Eddie and I gasped in fear, because we didn’t recognize the truck, and we knew we were being robbed. The audacity of the thieves, right there in broad daylight!
Eddie told the kids to stay in the car, as he got out and started in the house, but Trent who was about 11 years old, got out too. They were going in and save us from the robbers. And Trent was not about to miss out on the excitement.
I said, “Trent, get back in the car. Eddie, no, don’t go in, let’s go somewhere and call the police”.
But no, Eddie strode bravely to the door and Trent was close behind him and I guess Eddie was going to use his bare hands and strong body to confront the robbers. They started up the sidewalk toward the front door, which was gaping wide open. My heart was in my throat, as I just knew they were going to be killed. I told Julie and Derek to get down on the floorboard of the car. I would cover them with my body. Wasn’t I a brave mommy?
Suddenly, my daddy appeared in the door with my little brother Sammy! What were they doing here?
Then they explained they had borrowed my older brother’s pickup to come over to get a dresser that I had told Mother she could have. They called, no one answered, but they came anyway knowing we were probably at church. In those days we didn’t lock our doors.
We were so relieved and had a big laugh that day and the years afterwards as we told the story over and over again.
Another thing that happened was in 1969. We had moved to Hurst, Texas between Ft. Worth and Dallas. One weekend we went to East Texas to Lake Quitman in the Piney Woods, with our friends and neighbors, the Fields family. Anita’s parents had a cabin (house trailer) on the Lake. We got there late Friday night after dark. As we drove up to the cabin through the thick woods of pine trees, suddenly a light appeared in the window of the cabin. What is that? Someone was inside the cabin! We drove up to the cabin. Eddie and Trent got out of our car, and Don got out of his car, whispering to each other. They whispered for the women and children to stay in the cars. They would see who was in the cabin.
Don got his pistol from his car, and Trent grabbed a baseball bat from our car. They crept up to the front door, as the women and children crouched down in the seats, our bodies trembling with fear. Who was in the cabin – someone who took up resident in the cabin, because they knew no one lived there- a robber who was robbing the house? I hoped Don wouldn’t have to use the gun.
As they got to the door, suddenly the light went off again! Total darkness around, the cabin, the woods, you could not see your hand in front of your face.
Suddenly we heard the men’s laughter! Don had remembered Anita’s parents always left a security light on in the cabin that went on and off periodically to make someone (like a robber) think that someone was home.
Don put the key in the door and turned all the lights on, and the women and kids got out of the cars, shaken but safe. Our brave men had saved the day! I shudder to think what would have happened if they’re really had been a robber in the cabin. Would Don would have used his gun, and would Trent would have beat someone up with his baseball bat. Thank God we never found out!
Through interviews with Lauren's doctors, along with those of other physicians, researchers, and clinicians who specialize in lung cancer, readers will have a better understanding of the disease.
With the same passion and honesty Lauren exhibite
