Photo by Daniel Smith on Unsplash

The wind blew so wickedly I was barely able to squint so I could see where the hiking path was. I had never been caught so off guard by the weather. This storm just materialized out of nowhere. There I was trying to make my way back to the trees. I figured I would at least have a little bit of a buffer once I was out of this clearing.

The rain seemed to come at me sideways as I stumbled over rocks. Only 100 more feet to go and I would be somewhat safe. Then I slipped on a wet rock landing hard on my right side. Pain from my shoulder to my hip pulsed through my body and blood started running into my right eye. As I laid there trying to maneuver to my left side I heard the words “Stay, just stay”.

Never have I heard anything so certain in my life. I was both terrified and puzzled at the same time. I tried once more to turn onto my left when the words, “Stay, just stay” were heard again.

I breathed deeply and closed my eyes. I prayed to a God that I had not spoken to in years, I prayed to be kept safe in this storm, I prayed for the pain to subside, and I prayed to see clearly again. Then I started counting to 100. I don’t know why I decided to count, but when I reached 82 it felt like the storm was lessening. I continued counting. It was when I reached 100 the wind had quit, and I could feel the warmth from the sun on my face.

I opened my good eye, as my right one was wet and swollen. I could see the storm had moved on. It was only as I began to look around and gather my bearings was I able to see where I had landed. A good two feet to the left was a 30 foot drop onto jagged rocks. I inhaled as I began to panic. If I would have moved, I surely would have gone over that cliff. I wouldn’t have even known it was there.

It was at that moment, the sun shined so brightly on me that I had to raise my hand to shield my good eye from the light, and I bowed my head and said, “Thank You!”

— Nicole Barden 4/27/2021

Originally published in Illumination on Medium