Previous Challenge Entry (Level 2 – Intermediate)
Topic: Life (06/15/06)
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TITLE: On Road Again | Previous Challenge Entry
By Debbie Wistrom
06/19/06 -
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Just then Joe’s face came into my mind. Then it was Bill’s hairy little body. The bug was gone and all I could think about how much impact this pair had made in my life.
The old blue truck had creaked into the station under a cloud of smoke. The acrid smell of antifreeze filled the driveway. It was close to closing on a Saturday and I prayed for the right size of hose to help this truck get back on the road. When I walked up to the driver’s side door I was greeted by the hairiest, mangiest, smelliest dog ever. A gray head was bowed with eyes closed, so Joe hadn’t seen me jump. He asked how late we were open. Long enough to get you back on the road was my reply.
Luck would have it that it wasn’t just a hose. The radiator core was disintegrating. I don’t do radiators, but there was that a shop 20 minutes away that could seal it enough to get Joe home. Monday afternoon would be the soonest they could look at it.
Joe limped the truck through the bay door, but there was a problem. The odd shaped trailer he was towing would have to stay outside. Joe seemed a bit disturbed but was pleasantly resigned to the situation he and Bill were forced into. More discomfort filled the garage as I realized that this duo would not be leaving until late Monday or Tuesday and there was no hotel in town. Not good with strangers, I didn’t want to drive them to the next town that has a small hotel.
Joe must have sensed this as he explained that while making their deliveries he and Bill always slept in the back on a mattress. Then he asked if it would it be OK if they bunked in the back of the truck in garage. Sure, I could lock the door to the office and I always took the day’s receipts home with me anyway. With all that behind us, I left Joe and Bill alone.
By the time I’d gotten home, had supper, and watched some TV, I’d forgotten about Joe. He had become just another customer. That was until I walked into church. A group had gathered in the vestibule. In the midst of many smiles and much laughter was Joe. And Bill! The world’s ugliest dog was in MY church. God didn’t want dogs in his house of worship. Confused, I headed for the sanctuary. In MY pew, in MY spot was a flea bitten pillow. Pushing it aside, I sat down not understanding why I was to worship with a stranger AND his dog. As the music began, Joe and Bill slid in next to me.
Pastor Eric declared today to be new day and we were going to be blessed with something new. He called Joe and Bill to the front. Joe filled the room with the spirit of the Lord and my eyes with tears as he told how Bill had saved his life. It had been Bill’s love for his master that saved him, not his strength.
It had been a cold evening last year in Philadelphia, as Joe was getting ready to unload a generator for the phone company. When they arrived it was after closing as road construction had kept them tied up on the other side of town. No one was around to greet them with the usual cup of hot coffee, dog biscuit and help to unhook the trailer. He slipped on the ice getting out of the truck. He’d hit his head and was out cold. Bill had been Joe’s shadow long enough to know that something was terribly wrong. He barked and ran around until he found someone who was just locking up. Bill has been by Joe’s side every moment since. After hearing this no one complains about Bill. God was pleased to have them in church that day and so was I.
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