Several years ago my marriage was teetering on the edge and I had some decisions to make.  I decided that I would take a trip by myself and think things through without all of the distractions of home.  There is something exhilarating about getting in a car and taking off by yourself; something about having complete control of the radio station, where you stop to eat and the route you take to get there.

I decided to go to Mackinac Island in Michigan.  I took off in the morning in my clean car with my CDs arranged, my change in the appropriate compartments and tea in the cup holder.  It was my first solo trip and I was excited.  I dodged my way across various expressways, sat in construction traffic, sang along with my CDs, listened to Rush and ate fast food without worrying about the calories.

At this point in my life, I was very fearful of just about everything, so even the smallest things stretched me past my comfort zone. Driving across the huge Mackinac bridge was an exciting moment; I then found my way to the Ferry line and took the short trip to the Island.  All of it was new and unfamiliar and I have to say, despite my initial apprehension, I was falling in love with the adventure of it all.

I stayed at a beautiful hotel overlooking the straits, it was peaceful and elegant—and two miles from the more touristy downtown.  There are no cars on the island, so you walk, ride bikes or take a horse-drawn carriage to wherever you are going.  Over the next couple of days I walked, shopped, read by the pool and went horseback riding through the woods.  My most difficult hurdle was eating alone at a restaurant, but that apprehension soon passed.

Two nights before I was to leave, I took the carriage to town against a backdrop of very black skies.  I wouldn’t have been surprised to see a tornado drop down in front of me.  I ate dinner and then walked to pub for a glass of wine—the thought of going into a bar by myself was quite overwhelming but I held my breath, walked in and ordered a glass—just like a normal adult.  It was still raining after a tremendous storm but the lightening had stopped.  Unfortunately, the horse and carriage business was booming and I was going to have to wait 30+ minutes for one to go my way. 

As I am stubborn and often impatient, I decided to take the two mile walk instead of wait.  I started out fine but about ½ mile in, the streetlights got fewer and farther between.  Once I entered the woods back to the hotel, they were extremely scarce and in between was complete and utter darkness.  So to paint you an accurate picture, here is a fearful homemaker from Indiana, alone on a dark and rainy night on a pitch-black path surrounded on either side by woods. 

And that’s where I will continue this story…