Close to Nowhere - Linda Jones


Thursday, December 29, 2011
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Close to Nowhere
By Linda Jones

Bah-humbug?
Not for me!

I enjoy “both” Christmases — the commercial one and the one that celebrates the birth of Christ.

Shopping with my granddaughters this year has been fun. And enlightening! We ate out a lot — one of my favorite things – as we did our part to help boost the economy.

Crosspointe Christian Fellowship had a beautiful “home for Christmas” program. Dani McCulloch of Memphis and American Idol fame, was the guest and she was spectacular. All the music was spectacular. Brandi Bell and the worship band are incredibly talented.

They, along with Pastor Doug, reminded us all of why we celebrate — Jesus is the reason for the season!

We’ve had a wild week or two leading up to the holidays. My niece, “Sister,” from Heber Springs, Ark., is moving in with us New Year’s and she came here to make a reconnoitering visit a couple weeks ago. She also decided to come in the middle of the night after a work Christmas party and surprise me.

Naturally, she had a flat tire — in Marion, Ark. — just after midnight.

After a very complicated night, a trip to Byhalia and Ed’s Pawn Shop to buy a universal jack and a trip to Wyatt to pick up Sister from friends’, she and I headed to Marion to change the tire and then get her to my house.

Despite the fact that a guy selling pecans out of his van had parked next to Sister’s car in the McDonald’s parking lot, nary a soul from the restaurant, the van or his customers offered to help us. And we couldn’t get the tire off the wheel.

Vladimir Tickey redeemed Arkansas though.

Sister and I were close to panic and up strolled this guy and his two teenage sons.

“Ma’am, can we help you?” were the nicest words I’ve heard in a long time!

Turns out Mr. Tickey and his boys were on the way to the grocery store. They saw us from the road and turned in the parking lot just to save us. And they were God-sent! The rim Sister had driven seven miles on to find civilization was stuck fast on the bolts; the donut tire she had was almost out of air; and neither of us were getting the rim off the car.

Mr. Tickey popped the rim right off using the crowbar as a lever, then he aired the donut up and told us to go straight to a tire store. We did.

He said all the repayment he wanted was for the men in our family to “pass it on.”

“My wife might need help some day and I hope someone will stop and help her!”

Thanks Mr. Tickey and sons! Y’all are examples of the perfect Christmas gifts!

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