My Brother, the Hero

We have yet to blog about our entire experience at the Nascar Races in Vegas this year, but I wanted to share that the most horrible thing that has ever happened to me happened there.

Friday, we went to see the cars practicing and they did the qualifying event for Sunday's race. There were few people at the raceway and we spread ourselves further down the bleachers than where our usual seats are located. Ellie had lots of room to goof around and explore. She was doing really well listening and staying close and would come back when you said she was too far. Then she started testing her limits. Several times Grandma, me, or someone else would track her down and bring her back to where we were sitting. She began to think this was hilarious and was not listening as well as before. I decided to tell my mom not to chase her, but to use "threats" like time out or spanking because Ellie thought it was funny to have someone come after her.

About two minutes later, Ellie was testing the boundaries again and my mom and I both got up after her. We maintained a close enough distance but called out to her to stop, etc. She went all the way up the stairs and out the "portal" to the concourse area where the concessions and other shops are. We were seriously only five seconds after her and there were a bunch of people standing around right in the portal. She squeezed through them and when we got out the door, she was no where in sight. I looked in every direction and seriously could see no sign of her. Of course I panicked. I ran around like a chicken with my head cut off calling her name and asking anyone if they'd seen her. I talked to one of the ushers and she radio-ed to security. I ran up to the upper seating and called out to her some more. Then I realized maybe she had ran back to our seats somehow. No luck, but I was then able to get the rest of my family looking for her too. My mom and I kept searching further and further from where we lost sight of her. I just kept thinking "I know she's fast, but could she really have gone this far without waiting for us to catch up?" At this point, I was bawling my eyes out. Practically hyperventilating. I had lost my little girl. Some bad person probably took her. She will go to anyone practically and it had always been a benefit until now. A million other thoughts passed through my mind.

I stopped near the end of the concourse area and realized I needed to say a prayer. I was still panicked and wondered if I even shut my eyes for a minute if I would miss her running past. I just stood there with my back against a concrete pillar and silently pleaded with my Father in Heaven that we would find Ellie and that she would be ok. My mom had run all the way down toward the main gates and was still running. I decided I needed to stay closer and look for her. No more than a minute after I had finished my prayer, I turned around to head back toward where she left us and saw my brother holding Ellie in his arms! Of course I bawled even harder as he handed her to me. She looked at me and I think she knew she had done something very wrong. Between sobs I told her never to run away again and from the look on her face, I think she understood.

Jimmy found her near a different portal very near the one we lost her at. She was happily playing and crouching down underneath stairs that went up to the second level. We have no idea what really happened, but my thoughts are that she hid behind a concrete pillar when she knew we would be coming after her. Then, when she realized we didn't find her, she just kept on playing. Later, my mom said one of the guys she talked to said he could hear a little voice saying "Mommy" when we were calling out to her, but he didn't know where it was coming from.

I'm so glad that my prayer was answered that day and that I still have my beautiful little Ellie. There are a hundred horrible things that could've happened, but instead I was blessed. I'm so glad that during the very worst minutes of my life I had the prompting to turn to my Heavenly Father. He truly loves me and wants me to be happy. I'm also grateful for my brother being in the right place at the right time. He must have been in tune with the spirit to know where to look for her. Hooray for Uncle Jimmy, the hero of the day.