In the 1930's in rural Kansas, mud roads in winter were make for travel by horse or cars suited for its measure.

Rural places were always rural places.

Survival was just day to day living.

Day to day for everyone there.

Work, eat, sleep.

A woman there had an unusual afternoon one winter day.

Mother of several children, a midwife, a teacher, an overseer of business matters, Elsie.

At that time, merchants would reach out to rural customers.

Salesman in cars went home to home with necessities.

Household needs and the like.

On a cold afternoon my grandmother, as told by many, was visited by a salesman who had a flat tire.

So, he addressed his duty at hand.

With his tire jack in place, he started to lift the car.

Then the mud under the jack moves.

Screams alert Elsie.

What happens after that is still a mystery.

The man later told grandpa that, "Elsie lifted the damn car off my leg and I crawled out, I don't know anything else.".

Grandpa talked to Elsie about it later.

She said, "I don't know. I did it because someone had to do it. He was screaming and I was the only one there, so, that's all, suppers on let's eat."

This story spread all over the county and remains a strange but true mystery.

Before replacing the tire with the spare, grandpa and his brother, George, tried to lift the car the way the salesman said Elsie did it.

Together they struggled to lift the car close to the height she would have had to lift it.

"Something else was at work here." grandpa said.

The salesman agreed.

Shaking their heads, they were left with no answers.

Just this story of what powers may lurk in a loving mother.

Adrenalin wasn't known then by many.

But even knowing of it alone, wouldn't summon this level of a lurking power, something else was at work here.