What is Snow Tubing?
I grew up in a logging community, and it seemed like there was a surplus of large tire tubes - likely left-overs from the local skidders and logging trucks. We'd use these tubes as sleds in the winter to slide down hills and take jumps. For reference: the tubes we used were significantly larger than the red one in the picture below - more like 4-5 feet in diameter with a 2-3 feet whole in the middle.
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| Snow tubing with a store bought tube and a jump at the bottom of the hill. Image by hmschl from Pixabay |
A Desperate Prayer
One winter evening when I was between 9-10 years old, kids from our church went to sled at a school (Dutch Lake Elementary School) nearby the church. We brought various sized tubes with us, and the sledding conditions were fantastic. The hill was similar in size to the picture above, and it also had a jump at the bottom.
Everyone was seeing how much air they could get off that jump. A quick observation showed that a lack of speed and tube size appeared to be the limiting factors in air-time and distance. I decided to jump on the largest tube, face down and forward (for aerodynamics) to try and get maximum speed on my next downhill run. Unfortunately, a number of other people thought this was a great idea and jumped on top of me. As the tube picked up speed going down the hill, my back and body were stretched across the middle of the tube, holding the weight of everyone on top. Dismayed and scared, adrenaline pumped through me as I realized the jeopardy I'd put myself into. Speeding towards the jump, I wondered, 'Am I going to break my back when our airtime finishes and everyone lands on top of me??' It was one of those moments of desperate prayer without much time to be eloquent: 'God, help!'
The tube flew off the jump, along with all of us. We landed, a jumble of arms, bodies, and legs, and some of the people landed on me. I had the wind knocked out of me, and it felt like my belly button touched my back bone, but otherwise I survived without a scratch. Thank you, God! He literally 'upheld me' that evening and protected me from serious injury.
“So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God.
I will strengthen you and help you;
I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.”
Isaiah 41:10
Isaiah 41:10
