Running Late

Running Late?

September 13, 2012
From: Delaine

Do not be anxious about anything, but in every situation, by prayer and petition with thanksgiving, present your requests to God.  Phillipians 4:6

It was 11:00 am.  I was suppose to be on the road at 10:00am heading to Napanee, Indiana to meet Keith at the Amish family's home that he was staying with .  He had been there for 2 days, and was expecting me at 1:00pm.  It was a good 3 hour drive. I really don't like to be late, in fact, I despise being late.  But, the older I get, it seems the word "tardy" is a common word in my vocabulary.

The car was packed, and I needed to stop by the hospital to visit my Aunt Betty after her knee replacement surgery from the day before.  I needed to fill my car with gas, and I couldn't find my Indiana map.  I know, I know......I have a "smart phone" with a GPS, but I am a little old fashioned, I still like to have a map in hand.
By the way...did you know that most gas stations no longer carry state maps?  While getting gas I inquired, only to be told that our local drugstore, and the Welcome Center 6 miles away carried  them.  I had to figure another way..... for my "smart phone" wouldn't connect.
I borrowed my parents GPS device, set the destination, and headed on my way at 11:30am.
I settled in , listening to the radio, making phone calls to our kids, and started thinking about the Amish.  I began to feel anxious for my tardiness, and  I didn't know what to expect when I arrived.  Doubt and anxiousness were plaguing my mind.  I turned to prayer, and asked God to keep me on track, allowing me to enjoy every minute, and not be anxious for anything.
My prayers helped me focus as I drove, or should I say, zoomed down the interstate.
As I got past Fort Wayne, I began to see signs that identified roads that I knew would get me close to Shipshewana, and I knew that Napanee was about an hour west.  I began to doubt the GPS.  I wondered why this little device, with it's voice that reminded of "Agent 99" on the old sitcom "Get Smart" from my childhood, was taking me to roads I wasn't familiar with.  I had been to Napanee before and I didn't remember the route Agent 99 was guiding me to.  I fiddled with the device until I found the route marked with words instead of  map form.  "Take Hwy. 30 West to 19 North.  Turn right onto 19 North".  Gee, I wish I had my map in hand.  But, I will trust this little device.  When I came to road # 19, I became anxious again.  19 was a 2 lane country road that curved, and wound around through the country.  Surely this can't be right, I thought.  Great!  Now I am late, and lost!  Not a good thing for a first impression.  How do I explain to an Amish family that my "GPS" didn't take me to the right road?  My palms were sweaty, my stomach was churning, AND I had no clue where I was.  Again, I began to pray...."Lord, help me not be anxious, help me to get there".
The road began to change in its form, there was  extra paving and a large graveled area on the side of the road.  Then I saw a horse and  buggy cross in front of me. There were bicycles carrying young Amish men and women.  I realized I was right in the middle of the Amish community.  Pristine farms, with beautiful gardens. Flowers lining driveways,and sidewalks. Barns with buggies, and hitching posts.  I saw horses and cattle munching on green grass in the pasture.  Farmers in the field bailing hay on wagons pulled by 4 abreast work horses.  Then I saw children.  Precious children dressed in their bonnets, aprons, pants with no zippers, and Amish haircuts.
I took a deep breath, slowed the car down, and thanked God for my fortune.  Isn't this the purpose?  To get off the "grid" and enjoy a simpler life?  Agent 99 had taken me right down the middle of Amish Farmland.  I would find out later from Rachel the family matriarch and wife, that I started at the south end of the Amish district and drove all the way to the north end.  It was the long way, but the best way to see some of the local farms.  I thought about the Robert Frost poem, .............Two roads diverged in a wood, and I took the one less traveled by.  And that has made all the difference.
Soon I heard Agent 99 say, "Beech Road......turn right onto Beech Road, your destination is on the right".

I saw the 276 on the mailbox by the road and turned down a long driveway bordered by a beautiful vegetable garden with flowers, and green pepper plants heavy with fruit the size of large oranges.  Tomatoes hanging from the cages, Indian corn standing tall waiting for it's ears to dry, and the largest cabbage heads I had ever seen.  On my right was the pasture with large work horses, and buggy horses meandering next to the fence, noticing this strange car pulling up next to them.
I looked ahead to see my husband with a big smile on his face.  Late or not, he was waiting for me.  The lines on his face had softened in the past 2 days, and the tears that brimmed my eyes began to spill over.  This was exactly what I had hoped "our Amish farm" would look like.
The anxiousness was gone, I was just in the driveway, and already enjoying it.