For Safe Keeping

The heart-shaped locket Shayne was wearing and the backpack on her lap was all she had left. As she sat in the passenger seat, the only thing that brought her comfort was running her thumb over the smooth edges of her grandmother’s treasure around her neck. “For safe keeping, with love” was inscribed on the inside cover and the tiny photo of her grandmother was the only physical reminder she would have of her family.

“Everyone out!” Came a shout from the back of the van. Bags were being unloaded, and a group of surviving strangers were all climbing out and stretching their bodies from the long drive. Instructions were being given. “Grab what’s yours and head up to that tent.”

Shayne was eighteen years old and possibly the youngest of this group of weary travelers. She kept to herself while examining her surroundings. Who could she trust? What was her life going to look like? Her faith was still strong and she found comfort in her silent prayers. She had already processed being alone after loss but nothing felt predictable anymore. She could only take one day at a time.

At the front of the line was a table. Behind the table sat a girl with a clipboard and a pen. She carefully recorded information from each person she spoke to, then handed them a pillow case filled with a few supplies. Each person thanked her, then walked to the next station where they were offered food. Shayne knew with a glance they would be friends. “Thank you for this. How long have YOU been here?” She asked, after giving her name.

“I’m Maria, and I’ve only been here a few days. My whole family is missing, but my neighbor said this would be a safe place to be, and hopefully find them. Helping others keeps my mind from worrying too.” She let out a big sigh and held Shayne’s gaze as the two girls communicated silently, agreeing to be friends.

“Do you get to come eat soon? I can save you a seat.” Shayne said with a smile.

“Sounds good. I’ll be over when I can.” Maria responded.

Over at the food tent, there was a mix of emotions. Some people were huddled together crying, while others were eating and laughing. Shayne took it all in, processing this strange reality. She took one of the boxes with a sandwich and an apple and began looking for a place to sit. A group of guys and girls about her age motioned to her, so she joined them.

“Are you here alone?” She was asked.

“I am. For now.”

“We are all lone survivors. Some of us know our families have died, and others are still waiting for news. Somehow, though, we’ve all found each other and have decided to stick together. You are welcome to join us.”

Shayne smiled and nodded as she sat down by them, placing her sack of supplies and her own backpack next to her, and leaving enough room for Maria. Before eating, she lowered her eyes and prayed silently for her food. “Amen.” She said softly.

“How can you pray after all this devastation?” One guy from the group blurted out in disgust. “If God were good, He would have done something…”

Shayne took a slow deep breath before answering. “I agree, this has been a devastating few weeks, and the world as we knew it has been forever changed. But… God saw fit to spare us and preserve our life, and even in bringing us together, here, He is showing us we are not alone. It would be easy to focus on how unfair things are, or even question why people had to die. But those thoughts just don’t do anything good for me. I choose to ask questions like, ‘Why did you spare MY life? What should I do with what you have given me? Where are YOU in this, God?’ I don’t believe in accidents without meaning, and I accepted long ago that I won’t ever fully understand the ways of God. I guess, I find peace in reminding myself He is in control and I am not.”

The group was quiet. Some in agreement, others in frustrated disbelief. Shayne continued, “I didn’t mean to preach. It just spilled out. I hope you can see my heart in it…”

Maria interrupted her as she came and sat down. “Making friends already? That’s great! Hi, everyone. I’m Maria.”

The topic of conversation changed and they started chatting in smaller groups. The sun was setting and the energy of the tent was beginning to feel a little anxious. Night was coming, and out in the surrounding areas, lives were still at risk. Even though these people had been pulled to safety, there was an uneasiness that they all had in common. Shayne decided to ask a bold question. “So you already told me you were all lone survivors. Can I ask how it happened for you?”

One guy spoke up immediately, “I was walking home from work when the explosion happened. I fell to the ground and couldn’t hear anything for what felt like minutes. When I gathered my thoughts and regained my footing, I ran to my house. It was flattened as though it were never there. The only thing left was my treehouse at the back of the property I had helped build with my dad as a kid. I just stood there blinking, waiting for my house to reappear, but it never did. I looked further down my street to realize the blast from the explosion had cleared all six houses on the block. No life was left, except for me. Somehow, I survived. A lady from a couple streets over brought me here when she saw me living in my treehouse.”

Another girl chimed in, “I was driving across the bridge and traffic was all backed up. I was frustrated because I was held up at school, and late for a job interview. My mom had pulled strings at her work for me to meet with her boss and I knew she expected me to be presentable. Then, seemingly out of nowhere, my windows exploded! Glass went everywhere and car alarms were blaring. My radio was still playing music, but it changed stations and all I could hear was mariachi music. I was so confused. I later found out the building where I was headed, and where both my parents worked, had been bombed. Everyone was killed instantly, and I would have been there too, had I not been held up at school.”

Story after story kept coming and Shayne silently praised God for each life represented. Maria shared hers too, but hers was one of with lots of questions. “I had been off with a group of my neighbors for the week at camp. My parents couldn’t chaperone this year because of scheduling conflicts, but they were good with me going off on my own. So after a week of activities and learning about who God made me to be, I came home to a similar scene you all described. Half of our house had been crushed by a landslide from the back mountains, probably from an explosion, and the other half looked untouched. I climbed through a window and found a note from my parents that said they were going for a drive to check on my grandparents. This note gives me hope they’re alive somewhere, but there’s been no answer at my grandparents’ house. Did they leave for this drive after the landslide or were they gone when it happened? Are they okay? I don’t even know. My neighbor even drove me to my grandparents’, but the house was boarded up and no one was there. I don’t know what to think, but I’m definitely hoping they show up here, alive, and looking for me.”

Shayne took another slow deep breath before speaking, ‘I am the only person left in my family, but saw this coming long before the world turned upside down. My parents were killed in a car crash on the freeway a little over a year ago, at which time I went to live with my grandmother. She was sick when I moved in, but helping care for her was a healthy distraction and a way I could see God providing for both of our needs. I remember asking her what it was like to live on her own after my grandfather died years earlier, and she always had the same response. I never truly understood it until losing my parents. She described being tucked away and protected, and she called it ‘safe keeping.’ I could only think about keeping my money or special treasures in a safe place, but then, in this fragile place of great loss I could see God valuing me enough to tuck me away for safe keeping. I knew He had a plan for me, even though everything changed so quickly after my parents’ crash, and then again as my grandmother passed just two months ago. Now, to be watching things literally explode around me, I am grateful my grandmother did not have to experience this, although I have felt very alone. But in this moment, hearing your stories of dramatic loss and pain, I believe we all have been tucked away for ‘safe keeping’ as we are being built up and equipped for whatever is needed of us moving forward. The bombing will stop. The survivors will emerge and reunite. And even though we will have endured unexplainable loss, together we will be stronger and somehow realize that maybe this happened because we were the only ones who could do what needs to happen next. Not alone, but very much together.”

Shayne had been staring off into the distance as she spoke, and as she finished she glanced back at the faces hanging on her words. Fellow survivors from far beyond her own circle had been listening and were wiping tears from their cheeks. She was clutching the heart-shaped necklace as she spoke, and found strength coming from the truth she knew she had just spoken. Maria placed a hand on Shayne’s shoulder, grinning with pride as though she’d known her for more than this last hour. There was an overwhelming sense of comfort in the midst of devastation.

The country they’d known had been divided and torn apart, but those who remained were there for a reason. It wouldn’t be an easy road ahead, but there was a sense of solidarity and peace that came from knowing they weren’t alone. They had been tucked away for safe keeping and would now use what they had to rise up and do what needed to be done.

Take away: We never know what we’re capable of or what we can endure until we’re toe to toe with the unimaginable. Life is precious and fragile but meant to be lived boldly and on purpose. What are we being called to defend or lay down? Who do we have by our side to encourage and correct us? What can we do today to appreciate the divine protection we easily overlook?