Friday, November 20, 2020

The Train Whistle

Just a couple of days after Christmas in 2000, my 3 children and I moved into our new home in the country.  The city we had been living in was changing from a quaint Catholic German neighborhood, to a place where gangs were coming in as older homeowners passed away and the homes became for profit rentals.  My children were getting older and problems were arising.  I longed for a country atmosphere.  I had been so active in my parish and community so this process probably took longer than it should have.  There were so many obstacles to overcome and we moved temporarily a couple of times awaiting our final move.  It was horrible and I cried every time I drove toward the country looking for a place I could afford. It seemed like it rained every time I went searching.  I was very despondent wondering why God led me to look around Walton, KY but everything was falling through for a couple of years.  Finally one day I drove through a very small subdivision being built which I had applied for a down payment subsidy but fell through the cracks.  We stopped in front of one of the houses and a man was out front of his house next door.  As it turned out, his daughter was the realtor and they were kind of scrambling to get the remaining homes sold to complete their grant - the same one I had applied for and couldn’t get  worked out.  We exchanged information and within weeks, everything was approved for my loan on the house next door to this man.  I actually got to choose which property I wanted!  I chose the biggest yard even though it was a hill.  It was an absolute miracle.  I had a dream previously, kind of envisioned rolling hills.  The view from my new home was those rolling hills.  One of my sweetest memories and what I hold dear as an analogy for our family happened the night we moved in.  The day I got the keys I anxiously awaited because the electric couldn’t be turned on until the next day.  We had a big snow storm that night but I still couldn’t wait another day for the electric.  We drove those snowy county roads and made it inside the dark house.  We huddled up in lots of blankets, my two teen sons and daughter along with our golden mix dog Cuddles.  I heard the train whistles all night long.  It wasn’t an annoyance but rather a joy because there were no distractions, just us together ~ nothing else, with all the hope and dreams ahead.   I always loved to hear the trains because it reminded me of that night and all it represented.  God miraculously provided that small but brand new home for us.  This was particularly miraculous that I was approved for the loan on a part time job salary as I was still homeschooling the children.  We lived there for 18 years.  I sold the house and retired in October of 2018.  The kids were grown and the home had served it’s purpose.   I downsized to an apartment so I wouldn’t have repairs.  As it turned out, the builders had seriously cut corners causing me lots of repairs and expenses.  So I’m so enjoying this place with all new “everything” - some of the things I had actually picked out when I was considering staying in the home and taking a loan for repairs.  God specifically provided only to show me He is in control and is taking care of me.  It’s nothing fancy but a great neighborhood, lots of deer and wildlife in the yard and a balcony with a lake view.  The other night when I laid their quietly and couldn’t sleep, I heard a train whistle.  I’ve been here two years now but never heard the train before.  It made me smile and remember that loving feeling of our first night in our home.  God is so good ~ especially in the darkest nights. 

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