On Friday June 8, it was a partly cloudy and warm day. My wife, Kirby, my 10-year-old daughter Mackenzie and her friend, Lindsey and I were enjoying the Home Builders Association of Mississippi’s board of directors meeting and State Convention at the Perdido Beach Resort Hotel in Perdido Beach, Ala.

On the beach, the waves were getting bigger and so were the rip-tides and undertow. After watching the body and boogie board surfers, including my family, having fun, I decided to join in and do what I’ve done since I was 10 or 12 years old. As I went back and fourth several times into the waves lying on a boogie board, I heard my daughter plead for me not to go back out.

I replied, “Why, do you think I am going to drown?”

She said, “Yes!”

I said, “Don’t worry!” Into the waves I went. I was standing in waste deep water as the wave came, larger than normal. What I didn’t see, was the outgoing rip tide in a collision course with the approaching wave and me in the middle. As I quickly laid down on the board, the rip tide collided with me and the wave pulling the board from my grip to the left, slamming me head first into the shallow, sandy bottom.

I heard a loud crack from my neck, and then everything went quiet. I was fully conscious and cognizant of everything around me. I was under water, holding my breath.

I thought to myself, “Don’t panic, I’m in shallow water, just put your foot down, stand up and walk out.” My foot didn’t move nor the other foot. My next thought was, “I’ve got to swim out.” Neither arm would move. I then knew I was completely paralyzed. At that point I was floating face down in the water, still holding my breath and I could not pick up my head.

My thoughts were, “I hope someone saw me and is on the way to pick me up.” My wife and daughter are on the beach, our 22-year-old son, Weston, is at home on leave from the Marine Corps. How horrible for them. Things left undone. Not able to hold my breath any longer, my last thoughts were, “This is it. This is the way I’m going to die!”

I then inhaled salt water. No gasping. No struggle. I simply went peacefully into unconsciousness. Then an absolute divine miracle happened. The next thing I remembered was opening my eyes, lying on the beach, coughing up saltwater from my lungs and people all around. Again everything was clear. I knew I had been pulled from the water unconscious. When I breathed, there was a gurgling sound. I couldn’t move but I knew I had to get the water out of my lungs. I began a heaving and hacking cough expelling cups of saltwater. Then I saw my wife. I thought, I’m alive and a quadriplegic and I have to get this water out of my lungs. After lying for 20 to 25 minutes or so on the beach coughing up water, another divine miracle happened. One of my fingers moved and shortly thereafter one of my feet moved. By the time I was airlifted to Baptist Hospital in Pensacola all of my appendages were moving normally again. I would later find that two members of the Home Builder’s Association who are employees of Atmos Energy Corporation, Mr. Jim Bowen and Mr. Patrick Hyde were, in my opinion, directed by the good Lord to watch me from the moment I got on that wave until they pulled me unconscious from the water to safety. And they did! If they had gotten to me seconds later, I don’t believe I would be here writing this thank you letter. Another small miracle happened when these two angels pulled me out of the water to the beach and let me down.

Unbelievably, CPR was not needed. My eyes just opened and I started coughing up water. I without question, owe my second chance for life to these courageous men and the Lord Jesus! There was a third man, a young man named Hagen Walker, the son of another Home Builder member, Leigh Walker, who had the quick ability to call 911 and the paramedics to the scene. To him I’m grateful!

The miracles seemed to continue. At the hospital the neurosurgeon looked at my MRI, CAT-Scans and X-Rays and said he thought there would be no long-term, permanent damage to my spinal cord. He saw old football injuries to my neck that were reinjured and I would have to deal with that later. My spinal cord was bruised and today I’m wearing a neck brace hopefully for only a short while. I’ve been up and about, cutting grass, going to meetings but still under doctor’s advisement. I expect a full recovery with a lot of effort.

This whole “near death experience” has been very humbling to me and has been a great cause for me to reassess my priorities and what is really important in life and what is not! Starting with my wife and children. It’s been so overwhelming to receive all the prayers, calls and cards from home builders throughout the state. Here, locally, I sincerely appreciate and thank the many people who sent me get well cards, who sent the good food, and many uplifting calls, and those who put my on church prayer lists. All of this, no doubt, helped bring about those “miracles.” I will be forever grateful to you all!

Henry Watts is an Adams County resident and a county supervisor.