Sixteen years ago Jay & I graduated from Harding University in Searcy, Arkansas. We went on to build a life and family in Ellijay, GA where the mountains are beautiful and the southern hospitality is wonderful! But year after year we talked about Searcy with fondness. Always wishing to return one day and be part of the Harding family again. Last October we returned for a visit over Harding’s Family Weekend. We took the kids to a speech given by a fireman who survived the collapse of the World Trade Center on 9-11. We also saw a juggling act in the Administration Auditorium, showed them where we got married, went to a Bison football game and attended worship at the College Church of Christ. It was a wonderful weekend. Our kids loved it and it was hard to leave. This made our desire to return even stronger.
So, we began praying and contemplating how we could turn our dream into reality. Two weeks ago we posted our house for sale on facebook but then quickly decided to rent it instead. Within a day we had a reliable renter all lined up. We then contacted a friend who we knew owned rental property in Searcy. When we asked him if he had anything coming available he told us about a great brick home in a neighborhood we remembered. He sent us a picture of the outside and a description of the inside. We told him we would take it and began making plans to rent a U-Haul to move our belongings. As we began packing we couldn’t decide what to take because we hadn’t actually seen the inside of the house. We weren’t sure what would fit. So, we decided to make a quick trip out to Searcy to see the house. We planned to leave our truck and take a few boxes and other things. We decided to stay in the rental house since it was supposed to be vacant. This would allow us to take our 13 week old puppy as well as save money on a hotel room. We borrowed an air mattress, loaded our vehicles and we were off.
It took us about 11 hours, but finally we arrived in Searcy. With great anticipation we made our way to the rental house. The kids were excited to see their new rooms and we were excited to see the house as well. As we pulled into the driveway we recognized it from the picture that had been sent to us. However, there were some differences. The yard was littered with beer bottles and cigarette butts. The gutters were missing in places and there were holes in the trim around the roof. Each of the yards to the sides and behind the rental house had dogs, and they all started barking in unison. We began to become concerned. Jay went to the mailbox to retrieve the key that was supposed to be there, but was unable to find it. Bewildered, he called the realtor that was supposed to leave the key. The realtor informed him that he had had a hard time contacting the previous tenants and had been unable to get the keys. He promised to call us back and hung up. At this point our kids were saying, “Please don’t make us stay here,” and our middle child was crying. We were tired from our trip and our oldest had begun running a fever. Since we weren’t sure when or if the realtor would be able to get the keys that night we began looking for a hotel that would let us bring our dog. We went to one and called several more only to learn that they were all booked. Harding students were returning this weekend and their families had rented all the rooms. As the sun began to sink lower we became more and more concerned. About this time, the realtor called back. He said he was at the rental house with the keys and could we come back. So, reluctantly we said okay. Jay decided he would go in with the realtor and we would stay outside. When they returned the look on Jay’s face said it all. The inside was even worse than the outside. The property had been entirely trashed by the tenants and there was no way we were going to be staying there. Back to square one! What were we going to do now?
Our friend, the property owner, felt terrible. Knowing that we had driven such a long way he offered to pay for part of our hotel expenses. So, we began calling hotels again. Finally we found a room at the La Quinta Hotel. It was one of the last rooms they had available. We just wanted to lie down and decompress. It was about 7:30 and we were tired and still had not had supper.
All during the past few hours Jay was on and off the phone with people. The landlord had another house that would be vacant in two weeks and he thought maybe we could look at that house to see if it would work for us. The renters were very busy, but they took the time to call us back. Reluctantly, they agreed to let us come over at 8:30 pm that night to look things over. We said we would be there and piled everyone in the car again. This time Jay, Blake and I went in. Carley and Parker stayed in the car with the doors locked. We just hated to drag the whole Motley Crew in, plus Carley was sick and running a fever. This house was much better. Clean and being rented by a nice family. We thanked them again and again for allowing us to come over and left. I stopped off to get medicine for Carley and pick up dinner as jay took Carley, Blake and Minnie back to the room. Finally, we were able to rest. We sat down as a family and thanked God for our blessings. Then we asked Him to guide us as we decided what to do. Now, for a good night’s rest. Oh, did I mention that the only room they had was a king? So, we had one bed for five of us and a dog. Hmmm…Carley ended up sleeping on the couch and the boys slept with us. Not exactly the best night’s sleep. Still, we were so thankful to have a nice clean room and a place to lay our heads.
The next morning Jay woke me up by saying, “Everything is going to be okay. I think the house we saw last night will work for us.” Ah, Sigh! Everything always looks better in the morning. As the kids and I ate Razorback waffles in the hotel lobby I smiled knowing that even in this God was blessing us.
Not really wanting to take both vehicles back to Georgia with us, we began to look for a place to leave our truck for two weeks. Finally we decided to leave it in the back yard of the rental house we are going to move into. We rented a small storage unit to put the boxes and tubs we had brought along with us. The owner of the storage facility was a member of the Downtown C of C and waived the lock fee for us. After hearing our story he said he would just loan us one that he had. All was taken care of. We were able to relax for a few hours. Driving around town we saw all the new additions to the Searcy business community and the new housing development being added to the Harding campus.
After, another good night’s rest we headed back to Georgia. On the way home we began sneezing and having sinus headaches. Carley had successfully shared her germs with us. Wasn’t that nice of her? The whole family (except Blake) is now sick. As we spent our first day back in Georgia sick in bed, we talked about what all needs to be done. We are looking forward to being back in Searcy Labor Day Weekend Lord willing. In all things God is there. He walks with you and guides you if only you will let Him.
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