My Father and His Near Death Accident...

Ever since the twins were born a few months ago things have been going at 1,000 miles per hour. We now have 10 people living in our house at all times with gusts up to 15... Needless to say we have a lot going on. We have also recently been talking about relocating to a larger place so add house hunting into the mix and we are non stop.

During these times it's really easy to get caught up in "the race". Well, a few weeks ago we got a very sobering call from my mother. I answered the phone with the very typical "hey mom". What I heard on the other end wasn't exactly so typical. It turns out my dad had been in a very bad accident a few days earlier and they didn't want to tell us because they thought it would add so even more stress to our heavy load.

Thankfully my father was recovering at this point but the week was very touch and go. As he told us the story of his ordeal we could hear the emotion in his voice. This was a very big deal and with most people that stare death in the face, a big wake up call. We asked him to share what he experienced and felt, so this is his account...

May 1, 2020

And then I fell…

I live in a beautiful area of Southern California—the low Desert area, just east of Palm Springs in the city of La Quinta. My town is full of Golf Courses and is surrounded by picturesque Mountains, the Santa Rosas and the Corals. Since retiring in October of 2018, I have pursued several passions, one of those being hiking in and around the Coachella Valley. My hiking buddies and I have taken numerous hikes as well as numerous 4x4 Off Road treks—we love doing this! We are all retired and range in the 67 to 75 year old category. Perhaps we are getting to the point of needing to slow down, but not yet…lots of trails still to hike!

On April 15th, just a few short weeks ago, we were on a 7.5 mile hike. We were nearing the end of the hike and on our way back home when we came upon a very intriguing option. The option was to attempt to scale down a very steep, dry granite waterfall route, or hike around the mountain, a much longer route. It would be the quickest route off the mountain, however, it looked a bit precarious. As guys will do, we decided we could handle it. Marv went half way down, scouting it out, and indicated that it was pretty rugged. Again, we decided we could manage it. So, Mike and I started down, I went first. This was a very steep descent, and we did not have any specific equipment to be “rock climbing”. The total drop was around 100 feet.

Several steps into the descent, something happened to cause me to lose my footing…and then I fell. Honestly it was horrifying. I was tumbling head over heels uncontrollably on solid granite rock. I was conscious and could feel the pain of my face and head slapping into the granite on each bodily turn and I could not stop. When my tumbling did stop, I had rolled over the edge of the falls into a ravine that was 6-8 feet deep and abruptly stopped when my head crashed into a rock at the bottom of the ravine. My head split and the red waterfall began.

By the time my other buddy, Mike, got to me, I was visibly shaken, still conscious but bleeding profusely.

I thought my left eye was gone as I could see nothing through it. Mike began assisting me while Marv began contacting 911 and the Rescue Team. We had some paper towels and napkins in our backpacks which we used to attempt to stop the blood flow. We did not talk about how bad it might be just attended to the situation as best we could.

After an hour and a half, we heard the Helicopter approaching. We were in an area accessable only via 4x4 vehicle or helicopter for the rescue. The Rescue team came to us and assisted getting me out of the ravine and down the remainder of the mountain. From the Helicopter they flew me to an awaiting EMT Ambulance and transported me to the nearest Hospital.

Fortunately my injuries were not major; two bad gashes in my head, one above my eye which caused the temporary blinding, and the one where the rock acted as my stopping point. My nose was broken during the fall and my wrist and forearm were badly bruised and sprained which resulted in splint/casting. My ribs were badly bruised and my knee took a severe beating. My face a got a very good exfoliation, I don’t recommend the granite approach!

So…that’s the story. Honestly, if my course had not veered to the left during the tumble the result would have been much different—there was still another 70 feet that I could have fallen, however, that was not the route God had planned for me! But beyond the story… is a message that I want to tell. I am a Christian and have been a follower of Christ the majority of my life. Things happened so fast on the mountain that I did not have time to think. While I was in the ravine, waiting to be rescued, I told my friend Mike that I was ashamed that I did not pray for God to protect me as I was falling. What Mike said to me brought me so much peace! He, being a devout Catholic, said “what do you mean—I heard you calling God’s name all the way down” . I said really? And he said absolutely! The take away here is this: In our time of need, in the midst of great danger, our God is with us!

Psalm 27:1 says:

The Lord is my light and my salvation—so why should I be afraid?

The Lord is my fortress, protecting me from danger, so why should

I tremble?

What Marv and Mike both have told me since the fall is that they believed they were watching their friend plunge to his death. They were very frightened—fortunately for me, God had a different plan. I recall thinking that this was the end for me; but God had a different plan!

Now I am healing, and with the help of my Young Living Diamond Daughter, Shannon Conover, I have several exceptional oils and supplements which will aid the healing process and cover the physical scars of this adventure!

I thank God for His protection and am convinced once again that He takes no one before their appointed time. It was not my time and I am humbled and grateful.

Thank You Lord!

Jim Merriman

(picture taken only 3 weeks after fall)

In the midst of the craziness it is always important to take a moment and love those around you. When we heard the news my husband and I prayed and thanked God for protecting him from the fall. We also jumped into action and grabbed a few things to help him heal much faster.

Here is the protocol we used to help heal the wounds sustained during the fall.

Procol: Internally

• 1 packet of Ningxia Red 2x daily

• 4 drops of copaiba

• 2 drops frankincense

• 2 drops helichrysum

• 1 drop valor

• 4 capsules of Agilease daily

Protocol: Topically

• Helichrysum with lavender and frankincense

• Apply with Rose Ointment all over wounds / scars many times daily and alternate with Claraderm Spray

• Valor is for bruising and swelling so apply to the back of the neck for brain health

• Panaway and Lemongrass for the broken nose (apply throughout the day and before bed)

• CBD Rub 600mg for muscle soreness

• Panaway can help for vertigo symptoms as well

All of these products are made by Young Living and if you have any questions about them feel free to email on the "Contact" page or click the links on the "Team" page of the website.

Also... Thank you to my dad for sharing his story. Remember to give the ones you love some special attention today. You never know when it will be the last time.