An Eventful Monday Evening....

Tonight as I was driving the boys home from Cub Scouts, I turned left to get on the highway. I got about half a mile down the highway when I saw something in the middle of the road. It took me a minute to make out what it was but I finally realized that a deer was crossing through the middle of Hwy 311. It was headed away from my lane but I slowed down anyway. As soon as I started to press the break, for some strange reason, the deer turned and darted in front of my car. I slammed my foot on the break as hard as I could but I couldn't stop in time. The front passenger side of the car rammed into the deer. I pulled over as soon as quickly as I could. My entire body was shaking. 

My 7-year-old and 10-year-old were freaking out in the back seat. This is the first time any of us had been in a car that hit a deer. It was terrifying for them. Once they realized everything was ok and some of the shock faded, I overheard them saying, "I really hope that wasn't one of Santa's Reindeer!"

As hard as we hit the deer, I fully expected to it see laying in front of my car but he must have been well enough to run into the woods because I didn't see him anywhere. The car's bumper was pushed out in a couple of places and there was some hair stuck in the grill but overall, the car is fine. 

I'm honestly not sure how the deer walked away and the car wasn't seriously beat up.  I didn't just bump into the deer. I hit him really hard. Honestly, this experience shook me up! I am so incredibly grateful for God's protection this evening.  It could have been really bad but the damage is minimal and everyone is safe.

I am also thankful for the evening conversations with the boys because of our eventful ride home. They asked a lot of questions and realized how blessed we are to be safe. They both praised God for His protection in their bedtime prayers this evening. 

I want to encourage everyone to be on the look-out for deer as you travel at night. This deer was walking across a busy 4 lane highway at 7pm on a cold night. I wasn't in the mountains, on an untraveled road, in a deer crossing area, or in a wooded spot. If a deer is hanging out on Hwy 311 in High Point, one could be anywhere. Over the past couple of weeks, I've seen tons of deer running around and several dead ones on the side of the road. It's definitely something we need to be looking out for!