Every time we go, Owen gets tired a few hours in, and asks to lie down on the lawn chairs by the pool. He got all cozy under the towel, and before long he was fast asleep.
Things were going well, and then all of a sudden, Gabby slipped and fell backward and hit her head on the cement. She started screaming with all her might, and Kenna scooped her up and started rocking her to calm her. All of a sudden Gabby just went limp and unresponsive. Panic hit all of us. We scanned the pool for a life guard, and finally flagged one down. The life guard laid Gabby on the cement and made sure she was breathing, and tried to wake her up. Gabby wouldn't wake up. Kenna was so scared. I still have the image of her kneeling on the cement, begging her "Gabby, wake up. Gabby, please wake up". Roaring Springs called 911 and assured us that the paramedics were on their way. I called Marc at work, and told him we needed him to come as soon as possible. All of the older cousins started gathering all of the younger cousins and kept them at a distance and tried to calm them. We had multiple people come over and offer to help, but the lifeguards set up a barricade of chairs to keep people back.
All of a sudden I felt a tap on my shoulder, and turned to see a man. He asked, "Are you LDS?" I had no idea why he was asking, or how he'd gotten past the barricade of lifeguards, but I nodded my head and said, "Yes". And then he asked, "Would she like a priesthood blessing?" I paused, completely taken off guard by this kind offer, then I turned to Kenna, still on the ground, and asked her if she wanted him to give Gabby a blessing. She nodded yes. I explained to the man that her husband was on his way, and thanked him for being willing to help. There were so many lifeguards hovering over Gabby, the man waited for an opening to kneel next to her to bless her. Just then the paramedics arrived just as Marc also arrived, and the man told Marc he would let him give the blessing instead. The paramedics carried Gabby off on a stretcher with Marc and Kenna by her side.
At the time, it seemed that it all took forever, but looking back, I think it all went fairly quickly. I gathered up the kids so we could leave. They were all there except for Aaron. I grabbed a lifeguard and explained that we needed to leave (the kids were all very upset), and asked for help locating Aaron. He sent Aaron's description out on the radio, and he was found in a matter of minutes. We loaded up into our van and drove the 5 minutes to Scott's parent's house, where Jamie had also gone. We waited there for news from Marc and Kenna. But, my kids were tired and hungry, and I knew that any fussing from them would stress out Scott's mom, so I gathered my kids and drove home, asking Jamie to let me know as soon as she heard anything about Gabby.
It was a quiet drive home.
After we arrived home, we got a text from Marc saying that all the scans had come back clear, and that Gabby was just fine. The doctor decided that her passing out was a result of her crying so hard, and not from the bump on the head. We were all so relieved. For weeks afterward, Kate would say multiple times a day, "Gabby better!"
Later as I had time to reflect on the day, I found myself thinking about the man who offered to give a priesthood blessing. He had no way to know we were LDS, and it had to have been a little nerve wracking to ask such a personal question of a stranger. I'm certain he was inspired and prompted to do so by the Spirit. He was a stranger, but as soon as he offered to bless her, I felt such a peace knowing that the power of God was present. For weeks (and even know), when I think of him, I get tears in my eyes. I am so grateful for the priesthood power that God has allowed us to have here on earth. It is real, it is powerful, and it truly is a blessing.
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