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One Last Thought
By Carol Einarsson
August 20, 2001 As the rain started to fall for the second time on Sunday, Sterling Marlin led the field to the checkers on the rain-shortened race. My dear ten year old son sat on the floor and proclaimed the race unfair. His words were that with the shortening of the race, it wasn't fair to those guys that didn't win. His heart was feeling something very different. It wasn't the rain that was bothering him, it was Sterling Marlin. Five months ago, he decided that Sterling should never win again. I suspect there were others feeling the same resentment on Sunday, and it's to those people that I now speak. Maybe you haven't told anyone you blame Sterling. Maybe you haven't even quite admitted it to yourself. But somewhere deep inside, you were bothered that Sterling Marlin won. Here's what I told my son... Sterling didn't kill Dale Earnhardt. I can't count how many times I've explained it, but some things are so illogical to our human minds that we fail to grasp them. Let me say again, it was God, and God alone, that decided February 18th was Dale's last day. My son will tell you that but for Sterling's bump, Dale wouldn't have died THERE. He may be right, but if Ken Schrader hadn't been where he was, or if Rusty hadn't come up behind Dale, or if Michael hadn't been 0-462 and leading the race, or if the 3-crew had miscalculated the fuel and Dale ran out, or if... or if... or if.... However, as I challenged him, I challenge you who feel the same to decide a BETTER place for Dale to die. Would it be better for any of us if he'd been driving home from the track and been killed by a drunk driver? Better he perish in a helicopter crash? Certainly not. I don't like to sit and ponder the ways that anyone will die, but if God came to YOU and asked YOU to decide how Dale would die on February 18th, what scenario would you choose? I am not one to say that it's all okay because he was doing what he loved. However, when I think about having to choose the time and place, could anyone choose a BETTER one than God? Nothing is sadder than a loved one dying alone. Dale had millions of his closest friends with him. Some thought of him as selfish. But they got to see that other side of Dale, and it was the last thing they saw, as he died in the most unselfish of ways. The last thing he knew in this world was that his friend and his son were going on to win. He was the hero, and God chose the time. How could anyone script a better ending to an incredible life, than THAT? God knows the day and the hour that each of us will leave this life. He sometimes uses others, but always for His purpose. I've spent five and a half months trying to change the mind of my child, and I don't know that I've yet succeeded. Perhaps, though, someone else's mind was changed today. So tomorrow, let NASCAR blame whomever they wish. Let them say what they need to say to salvage their own reputation. When it comes down to it, it wasn't even the front-end rigidity that ended Dale's life. On the eve of the "investigation" being made public, let's all remember that Mike Helton does not control the world. Seat belts do not kill people, and as hard as it is for yours truly to admit, neither do concrete walls. Even if that wall had been soft, God's way would still prevail. Do I continue to miss Dale Earnhardt? Surely I do. But I also trust God to do what's best with his creation. I hope you can, too. "May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit." -Romans 15:12-14
You can send feedback to Carol at: Insider Racing News
The thoughts and ideas expressed by this writer or any other writer on Insider Racing News, are not necessarily the views of the staff and/or management of IRN. Although we may not always agree with what is said, we do feel it's our duty to give a voice to those who have something relevant to say about the sport of auto racing. 
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