The Secret Spa

Lost in the Rain

My windshield wipers pulsed back and forth at top speed, but they weren’t doing much. I’d never seen a downpour like this before. I hate driving in the rain.

Worse still, I was completely lost. I tried taking a shortcut home, a path through the mountains, that should’ve helped me skip a bunch of rush hour traffic. Instead, here I am 3 hours later, still in the mountains, no idea if I’m even still headed the right way!

My GPS is useless. “Signal lost” happened over an hour ago. I know I’m surrounded by mountain ranges and dense forest, but it should’ve reconnected with the satellites by now.

I peered through the windshield, through the heavy rain. This narrow winding road could be taking me even deeper into the wilderness, for all I knew. Maybe I should find a spot to turn around and head back. But with steep mountain walls on one side and sharp cliffs on the other… I really only had one choice: keep going forward, and hope I saw a sign of civilization again soon.

Just then, I thought I saw a light up ahead. Not headlights. Stationary, bright, shining through the heavy rain and fog. Beaming through the forest. Like a beacon of hope, in the midst of the wilderness. Was it a gas station? A motel? Something else?

Then I saw a sign on the side of the road. Small, wooden, old. Almost drove right past it without noticing it. “Sanctuary Spa, next right.”

Maybe they could tell me where I am and give me directions.

They say men never ask for directions. But that’s not true. Also, I was desperate. And alone. And so tired of driving through this relentless rain.

So tired… in general, for many reasons, really.

I needed a break. Not just from driving in this weather. From… a lot of things.

Then I saw it. A small, narrow road, branching off from the main winding roadway. “Welcome to Sanctuary Spa” appeared engraved in an old wooden sign at the entrance. This must be it. I pulled off and drove deeper into the woods, down the narrow side road, headed for the sanctuary.

The trees were overgrown and uncomfortably close to the road. My car barely fit through some spots. I descended down the hill, rainwater rushing past me, going deeper into the wilderness, headed for the light.

The spa facility emerged from the thick trees. The rain continued to pour. I parked my car in the small paved lot – there were three other cars here too. That was a good sign. They were definitely open.

A flower-lined sidewalk led from the parking lot up to the front entrance of the spa, a short distance away.

I wish I had an umbrella. I didn’t. From inside my car, I looked at path and building ahead. It was a small facility. Unassuming. Log cabin style, with bright lights at the entrance and around the parking lot, only single story high – the whole place appeared no bigger than a little 2-bedroom house. Was this the right place? Did I miss a turn somewhere to get to the actual spa? This looked more like someone’s house in the middle of the woods. I didn’t want to go knocking on some stranger’s front door.

But then I saw a sign positioned at the start of the sidewalk near me. It was small, connected to a single wooden post, engraved on a rectangular piece of white-painted wood. “Welcome,” it read, “Please follow the path. Come inside.”

This must be it.

I quickly got out of my car and ran for it. I’m sure on a normal day, this flower-lined path in the middle of the woods, surrounded by mountains, with a babbling brook flowing nearby would’ve been absolutely beautiful, peaceful, serene… But today was not an ordinary day. I had no idea just how true that was. The rain never let up. It poured. I ran.

The small building wasn’t that far away, but by the time I got to the front door, I was soaking wet.

Head to toe. Drenched. Dripping.

I reached for the door handle.

I pushed it open and stepped inside.

A gentle bell jingled.