When the prompt is “Think back on your most memorable road trip” I want to think of a Christmas visit with friends, a fun vacation on the beach with our kids, or a family get together in the mountains. However, none of those road trips over the past 24 years of marriage were as memorable as the one we took in 2021 to celebrate my in-law’s 50th Wedding Anniversary.
When I say memorable I use the word in the sense that for those who lived through it (which was everyone), to mention it even today triggers a type of PTSD and most will laugh and say it is still “too soon” to talk about almost 4 years later.
For months we had schemed with my brother-in-law and sister-in-law about how we could surprise my mother and father in-law. We meticulously planned to secretly get my family from Ohio, and my sister-in-law’s family from Oregon, to Louisiana without Mimi and Grandpa Dave catching wind of what we were doing. In a tight-knit family that talks and texts nearly everyday, this was no easy task.
We drove straight from our house to Louisiana in our 15 passenger van. We were careful not to post any pictures to our family album like we normally do sharing our progress. Meanwhile, my brother-in-law snuck off to the airport to pick up his sister and her family. When we arrived, we unloaded and quickly hid our van behind some trees and bushes out of sight. It wasn’t long before everyone but the celebrated couple was in my brother-in-law’s house. This consisted of 6 adults and 22 kids.
Our plan was to stay out of sight and limit communications until the next day when Mimi and Grandpa Dave would be invited over for dinner to celebrate their anniversary. We did a great job. The adults made further preparations while the kids played on an inflatable slide my brother-in-law had rented. One of the older kids got sick but as kids do, quickly recovered and rejoined the fun.
The next day the celebrated couple arrived while we hid in the den behind sliding doors. Once Mimi and Grandpa Dave were seated, we emerged from the room completely catching them off guard. They were shocked and excited to see us and learn how much planning had gone into such a surprise. Later in the day more guests arrived and we celebrated a wonderful couple and tremendous witness to marriage.
It was a beautiful celebration of marriage complete with a renewal of vows, cake, and great fun. They enjoyed the food, presents, and being surrounded by 22 grandkids, their son, daughters, and their spouses. After the celebration, all the kids went to bed while the adults stayed up playing games and having fun until eventually everyone went off to bed.
Sometime in the night, one of my kids got sick. To say they got sick isn’t fair to them. To put it lightly, they were emptying everything in their body from both ends. In the morning, another child became sick…then another…then another…
Over the course of the next 5 days nearly everyone got sick and experienced the same devastating effects. 20 people in one house 6 older boys in a guest house and 4 bathrooms were exploding at random. We tried everything. Healthy adults patrolled the house with Lysol and hand sanitizer. Bottles of activated charcoal sat on every counter free for the taking. Anti-vomiting and diarrhea medicine flowed like wine. Nothing helped and nothing would stop the spread. Randomly, one by one, each person fell prey to the Norovirus.
We later learned that Norovirus can live up to two weeks on some surfaces and is unaffected by Lysol. Bleach is the only thing that can clear it out. We began using bleach wipes but alas, it was too late.
In the end, Norovirus won 28-2. Even those from Oregon who had escaped it’s clutches in Louisiana eventually succumbed, one in the airport.
As I think back on this event I am strongly reminded of my wedding vows, the same vows Mimi and Grandpa Dave promised on their wedding day. “…in sickness and in health…” this trip was a visible witness to these vows and reminder that marriage contains both. Good times and bad, rich or poor, vibrant health or Norovirus – If He brought us to it, He’ll see us through it. It’s just part of this joyful journey we call life. Stay close to one another…but use hand sanitizer!
A memorable road trip? Yes! We now look back and chuckle about the absurdity of it all. We chuckle but we also harbor a tinge of fear. We still get together in the same way and have had many gatherings without so much as a sniffle. However, the thought of history repeating itself one day looms large in our minds. It was a memorable road trip and beautiful celebration to say the least but one we hope never to repeat.
Have a memorable road trip story you’d care to share? Tell us in the comments!
James M. Hahn, Author 