Out of the blue there was an ear-splitting BOOM above our heads. Cliff and I looked at each other dumbfounded, jaws dropping. Apparently, the shattering of thousands of glass shards followed the BOOM in the Subaru’s moon roof.
We had traveled about seventy miles west of Jacksonville on Interstate10 watching for the anticipated exit to catch I-75 to Valdosta, Georgia, about sixty miles north. The Subaru’s hatch was weighted with copies of Mennonite Daughter and My Checkered Life, anticipating eager book club readers. The day began cloudy and windy—but no dump trucks with loose gravel in sight. No pickups with insecure cargo either. So, what caused the explosion inside the car’s moon roof?
I had to make a phone call. “Marcia, we’re on our way, but we’ve had some trouble.” Marcia Felts, friend and book club coordinator, had engaged me to do a presentation for the ladies of Valdosta Country Club. I tried to down-play the severity of the explosion that had just happened overhead and assured her, “We will make every effort to arrive at 11:15 this morning, as planned.” She didn’t need to know then that Cliff had temporarily parked the car on the highway shoulder with flashers and pulled out brown sealing tape for a temporary repair. “I had a feeling I should throw in U-Haul tape at the last minute. Glad I did!”
As I was finishing the conversation with Marcia, Cliff stood on the car’s open door on the driver’s side to tape across the rectangular, zagged cavity of the moonroof as semis and cars whizzed by. Luckily, the whole roof had not blown off; the exploded glass was still encased within the moonroof frame. Nevertheless, we drove cautiously but fast, Cliff held the headliner opening with his right hand, his left hand holding the wheel. I alternated my left and right hands doing the same for about ninety minutes. We wanted to make sure the shards of glass wouldn’t blow inside our car as we drove at high speed.
* * *
The audience was receptive and inquisitive. My Powerpoint presentation prompted questions, “Whose idea was it to write a marriage memoir anyway? “How did you cope with disagreements during the writing process?” One woman even shared her own unusual marriage story with the group, the best kind of interaction.
As the morning progressed though, Cliff and I wrestled with unspoken questions: Can we still enjoy a leisurely evening and supper, spending overnight in Valdosta? (We had packed suitcases in anticipation.) Is the temporary “fix” on the roof strong enough to hold if the weather turns bad?
Stay tuned for Part 2 of the Book Tour adventure, which begins with “But first there was silence!” A continuation of our eventful Tuesday trip on April 2, 2024.
Have you experienced dangerous highway adventures? Your response to ours?
Curious readers want to know!
Good morning, Marian! Oh my! What an explosive opening. I’m glad you’re OK. And also happy for you that you had such a good session. I’ll be waiting to see what happened next–though of course, we know you’re fine, the most important thing.
Last year we had an accident on a nearby busy highway, the result of construction debris. It ruined our transmission and steering. Fortunately, we were near an exit, and my husband was able to get off 295 and onto a side street before it died completely.
Merril, while our accident was frightful, yours was totally disabling. Your husband’s adrenalin must have kicked in long enough for him to muscle the car off the expressway and onto a side street. Scary but memorable!
Thanks for getting us started wit another explosive story that ended well! 😀
You’re welcome, Marian. 🙂
How horrifying! I can’t imagine how scary that must have been. You and Cliff were so brave to continue with your trip. I’m so thankful you weren’t hurt. What a brave couple you are. God was watching over you.
You’re right: God was watching over us.
While we may have been brave, we also had no choice if we were to accomplish our mission.
It’s so good to see you here today, Collie! 😀
WOW! So glad you’re both safe! Anticipating ‘the rest of the story’………..
Jack, I’m glad I whetted your appetite for Part 2. Thanks for checking in. 😀
Oh my goodness! What a thing to happen. I’m glad the damage wasn’t any worse and no one got hurt, and delighted you made the session. I’m sure you were well prepared and didn’t let a “little” thing like that stop you! I look forward to hearing the rest of the story.
You remind me of other interesting stories authors could tell about their book talks. Some of us have been sick or in some kind of pain (before or during the event) but we persevere because “the show must go on.” You’re that kind of person too, Darlene! 😀
I’m glad you arrived safe and sound for your presentation and that it went well. Aside from engine misadventures, driving through the White Mountains during a blizzard was dicey. Every few miles, I’d lose the steering because of the snow packing the wheel wells. I’d have to pull over to dislodge the packed snow.
Florida contends with hurricanes, but New Hampshire has blizzards. I know it’s scary to loose steering. Once driving in the snow in PA, I didn’t have enough speed to clear a hill and slid down backwards. Luckily my brother was with me and flagged any oncoming traffic so I had time to get turned around properly.
Always good to hear from you, Liz! 😀
When I moved to Florida and experienced the first rain storm (not hurricane) as I was driving, I was so scared I had to pull over and wait for it to stop. It was as if I had driven headlong into a swimming pool.
The rain sometimes is blinding and comes down in sheets. We need rain now but not in driving storm, Liz!
Oh my goodness! So glad you both are ok.
Thanks for reading, Ann. Yes, in the end all turned out well. 😀
Thank God 😁
There’s never a good time to have a blowout, but this one happened at the wrong time for sure! It’s good you were able to get to your event on time! And now you have a story to tell!
Yes, we arrived at 11:08 a.m. with an 11:15 target time. And, yes, I have a story to tell of God’s grace and provision. I know you recognize that, Elfrieda! 😀
Oh my word!!!! Marian, I’m glad neither of you was hurt by broken glass!! My goodness! So glad you made it to the event!
I’ve had car trouble on the highway. One time, the same car broke down twice–one week and then the next. I put over 80,000 miles on that car. My mechanic begged me to get a new car.
I’m guessing you heeded the advice of your mechanic and got a new car.
We, too, keep our cars a long, long time. Our previous car was almost 20 years old when we got another one. (P. S. our son is still driving that old car!)
I’ll let you in on a little secret: The Subaru in the story wasn’t even our car. More drama in part 2, L. Marie! 😀
Shades of our roll over what seems a lifetime ago! My heart skipped a beat as I started to read your tale and had to read on to make sure you were okay. How frightening that must have been! But you landed on your feet and wowed the crowds in spite of it. That’s what we wise women do, isn’t it. Good for you and how fortunate you are to have a willing and helpful companion on your journey.
You are a wise women too, Dorothy!
Yes, I was fortunate to have a willing and helpful companion on my journey. Two weeks ago I flew solo to PA and rented a car. Although I had no breakdowns, traveling alone is so much harder as you can imagine. 😀
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Marian — Oh, me. OH, MY! Way to dangle a carrot for your readers. Len and I are both curious to reading the rest of the story.
There is also a scary prelude to this story. You’ll be privy to all of it in the next installment. I’m glad Len is joining in the suspense too. 😀
Wow…I bet that was scary luckily you were both ok…the only time we had a mishap was when our glass topped dining table just shattered glass was everywhere luckily no one was in the dining room at the time and the only explanation we could think of was that the sun was shining on one part and heated the glass which was tempered and strong but shattered into thousands of pieces…but if was in a car like you I can just imagine how scary that would be 🙂
Glass shattering is scary, no matter what the cause. Thanks for sharing your story, a phenomenon I had not heard of before.
May all of your adventures in cooking and dining be safe ones, Carol! 😀
Thank you, Marian and likewise with your car journey and sun roof 🙂
Indeed!
Yikes!!! Soooooo thankful everything was alright. Dave and I always travel on our overseas adventures with a roll of duct tape – you’d be surprised how often it comes in handy 🤣. Take care on the rest of your adventure❤️
We are treated to a visual travelogue every year from you guys. No doubt you are keeping a journal as well. Probably you could easily write a story with the title “Our Handy-Dandy Duck Tape. Good to hear from you, Cheryl! 😀
Wow! That’s frightening indeed. So glad you could continue and arrived safely. My worst experience was laughable. The first time I drove alone, I had my 1 year old. We went for a 4 litre bag of milk. I set it by the wheel to put him in his car seat, then proceeded to back over it. It exploded with a bang. The kid in the van by us wet his pants laughing. I was mortified. I sobbed when I got home and my dad went for more milk. I hope you had a happy ending!
I love your story! Laughter and tears in the same tale, so Jenn-like. Thanks for sharing. 😀
Hi Marian, goodness me, it sounds like there was a fault in the glass. I’m glad you got to your destination okay.
The people at the Subaru dealership said they had seen a case like this before, but rarely. I have yet to hear a full explanation. I suspect there is more to the story.
Thanks for stopping by, Robbie! 😀
Great story, Marian, and so well told. I’m glad that you’re both okay, which means I can now joke about Cliff’s picture. I’m assuming you asked him to reenact the dramatic moment, and this wasn’t in real time. I used to have very elementary dictionaries for the children when I taught 2nd grade. It would have pictures to go along with the simple definitions. Cliff’s face would have fit nicely under “surprised” or “worried.”
I had a similar experience, but not nearly as dramatic as yours, with my truck. As I warmed it up one day, I noticed a crack in the windshield that had not been there the last time I drove it. Then, as I drove down the road, the crack meandered across the length of the windshield at a snail’s pace. It was freaky, and certainly it crossed my mind that the windshield my explode. Thankfully, that did not happen, and I got it replaced in short order.
Looking forward to the next part. Way to leave your readers hanging. I suppose that’s what you call a CLIFFhanger. (Pun intended)
Cliff is quite a ham, so he happily complied with the reenactment. He nailed the expression, though a sharp eye may notice in the photo that large oaks usually don’t appear so close to a moving car on an expressway.
I’m glad the story entertained you. Thanks for sharing yours, Pete! 😀
Hello,
You and Cliff were protected. Many things could have happened , like glass flying in your eyes but it didn’t. You were blessed to come out of that without injuries. I hope your book show was great.
All the best.
Shalom shalom
You recognize the another name for God, the protector: Jehovah-Jireh. Yes, we were aware of His watch-care, even in an emergency situation.
Thanks for the comment and the good wishes, Pat!
Oh my, Marian! That must have been something scary! I’m so glad the entire moonroof didn’t shatter with pieces all over the interior of the car. That was my first worry. Good thing you could do a temporary fix. And, I’m happy your book events went well.
Our highway stories are mixed down here in South America, where obstacles are plentiful and unexpected – potholes, broken roads, stray dogs, unmarked speed bumps, no shoulders, cattle, bikers, walkers, aggressive and/or oblivious drivers…
You do an excellent job of letting us know both the pleasures and hazards of the nomadic life, Liesbet. Now you have the added challenge of a foreign culture and language in South America. I think the absence of shoulders would be so scary, especially in an emergency. Good to hear from you again. 😀
Hi Marian – I am so pleased that your are safe and well. I am very interested in why memoirists write about their lives, their marriages and experiences. I believe that more of us should write our stories, but where to start? I would have loved to attend your information session.
You ask a probing question, Rebecca: Where to start?
I began with writing stories randomly as they came to mind on my blog. Readers seemed to enjoy my personal stories. After a while, patterns began to develop as I mined family history. The interaction with other readers helped keep me going.
I appreciate your interest! 😀
Sounds scary to me, and I was happy to imagine Cliff taking charge and climbing up to tape the roof. That’s the kind of thing Vic would have done and what both my sons would have done. The love of adventure! I, on the other hand, would have found a place to sit for a good cry. I loved adventures with Vic, but my last trip to North Carolina ended with a strange and hard to diagnose illness. I’m a wimp who likes to stay home with my pup and a book. I eagerly await part 2 or your story.
Elaine, we married guys who love adventure and don’t shy from challenges. I can relate to your personality type although I don’t like life to be too predictable.
In this case though I had no time to cry with a destination to reach.
You remind me that this evening I have a good book to read. Thanks for sharing your thoughts once again. 😀
What a fright and worry when you were booked for a talk. I have not experienced anything like that, thank goodness Marian. And glad you arrived in time to give your talk. Well done !
Thank you, Joy. You know the wise saying, “All’s well that end’s well.” But there’s more to this story than I’ve revealed this week. Ha! 😀
Wow! That must have been so scary, Marian! I’m glad you didn’t get hurt but flying glass and made it safely to your destination. Well done to Cliff for temporary repair.
Hope sales of book were good too.
Peter and I have had a few breakdowns in our motorhome and it’s always awful when you need to be picked up by a truck, especially when we were living in it full-time and had nowhere else to go.
You remind me that when you live the nomadic life, your home and transportation are one and the same. I know you’ve made some wonderful memories on the road, but I imagine you are enjoying a more stable life these days. Thanks for sharing your thoughts here, Fatima! 😀
Oh wow! The same thing happened to us in Brian’s Nissan. We were traveling to Virginia a couple of years ago, and thought something had fallen onto our roof. Then discovered thousands of glass shards under the moon roof cover. After getting it taped over with plastic, we made it back home and called the insurance company. Good luck!
So it’s not just Subarus. . . Nissans too. Hmmmm. . .
Now waiting for a replacement moonroof. Thanks for sharing your scary story, Bonnie—what a tale!
I can’t wait to hear the rest of the story Marian! I need it now haha. Dare I say you left us with a Cliff (and Marian)hanger? Thank goodness both of you were alright; the damage looks bad. It sounds like your book talk was fabulous and I’m happy about that. Thanks for such a fast-paced, well-told story. 🙂 Welcome back!
Melanie, I’ll probably finish the tale next week instead of my regular two-week posting. There is a prologue to the story that’s nearly as exciting as the blow-up. You can read all about it coming soon.
It’s good to be back. The month of April was super busy–no time for story telling. Thanks for all the affirmation here. You keep me going! 😀
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Not the sort of thing you want to have happen, but you handled it. Still, scary. Happy that your presentation went smoothly, uneventfully.
We didn’t have a choice: We had to handle it if we wanted to meet the book clubbers in Valdosta. Great comment, Ally!
Wow, what a scary event Miriam. I’m glad you weren’t hurt and the glass stayed contained. And you were well prepared wth tape and supplies! I’m glad the book talk was a hit! <3
Stay tuned for Part 2 recounting a scary start to the day and ending with happy helpers. Thanks, Debby.
Uh oh. I will definitely return for part 2. 🙂
Yes, it was quite an “exciting” day! Wait until you find out the rest of the story.
Thanks for the encouragement although I don’t think readers need any more urging to return here. 😀
Oh Marian, that’s so upsetting, especially after I read your account and saw your picture. I’m so glad you and Cliff weren’t injured and you arrived safely to your book talk. I am curious how that could have happened. Kudos to Cliff for packing the tape.
Barbara, one theory about the exploded glass is that the moonroof glass itself may be too thin or not reinforced enough. Still, it’s mostly a mystery.
I’m glad you will return for Part 2. 😀
I am totally curious.
Tomorrow!
Perfect – it’s my day off 🙂
It’s your day off, and maybe you’ll read a story with a happy ending. Perfect, Barbara! 😀
This scenario gave me the shivers. Could have been so dangerous! I used to think nothing of driving but now if I travel beyond 30 minutes I get nervous. Combo of cars that drive too recklessly, high speeds, and weak eyes. 👀 The fear began 4 years ago when a distracted driver (texting) plowed into our car and I got a concussion. Maybe I need car therapy. 🥴I’m anxious to read the next post! 😧
I’m so sorry to hear about your accident. Of course, you can trace your car anxiety back to such a frightful event. COVID seems to have affected me that way too even though so far there’s been no collision. We won’t stop driving, of course, so we do it afraid. . . and limit our driving.
Part 2 happened inside our garage, so you don’t need to feel anxious about that.
Thanks for sharing, Pam! 😀