Growing up in a small town, there wasn’t much to do “back in the day.” You had to invent your own fun, especially if you lived out in the country. Before I became a big-city fella living in Columbus, my home was about eight miles down the road in a small area named Bernardo. I was fortunate to have kids my age to play with, but often it was me and the woods. I wonder how many kids get to play out on the road or in the woods these days?
After a while, those eight miles from the hustle and bustle of the town were a long way off when you didn’t have your own car or money to get anywhere very far. When we did get to borrow a car, we would spend countless hours on back roads that led nowhere and everywhere.
Aging does have its advantages when a young boy gets his driver’s license, a part-time job in town, and a second-hand car. I discovered the triangle and cruised the tri for hours with my future wife, Dianne. I wonder if other small-town kids had their cruise routes.
This was a time of Bucek’s, Dairy Bar, and Dairy Queen. This was a time of cheap gas and cheap thrills. Those early country roads then led to Swiss Alps, East Bernard, or New Bielau, where the Barons or Triumphs played. Yes, I did not name a country western band because I wasn’t a kicker then!
Forty-five years of marriage, two kids and several grandchildren later, we are still driving those same roads. Although those same roads are different today, they all led up to where we are now. Some of those roads were paved. Some were gravel. Some were bumpy and potholed. Some led to nowhere. Some led to good times and some led to bad. Some roads are wide and winding and some straight and narrow. Each road serves its purpose.
I’ve been on many roads in my life. I finally found the road that leads me to where I want to go. I finally found the Way. Where is that road to show you the Way, you ask? Jesus says, “I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through me.”
Will you end up on a dead end, a highway to hell or a road lined with gold?
Don’t get lost, check the map called the Bible.
