Warning Signs

We planned a day trip to the city to visit my aunt.
We were going to take the train so we would not have to worry about parking.
I only had one child at the time and she was two years old.
I was expecting my second child in about six months.

I parked my car at a local train station, so it would be there when we returned.
I was so thrilled to see a parking space right near the entrance.
It was so convenient, since I had extra things in one hand and a toddler in my other.
I locked the car door and we were off.

I got the tickets and we proceeded to wait for the train.
It was an adventure for my daughter who was the official lookout for the train.
I could hear the train coming in the distance.
I watched her eyes get big as saucers when it approached.

I held her hand as we went up the steps and entered the train.
An audible gasp of excitement came from her lips.
This is what we had read about in our library books.
This is what we had been talking about for days.

Her first train ride.
We chose our seats and settled in.
I looked over at her with her legs sticking straight out before her.
She barely touched the back of the seat in front of her.

Her little patent leather shoes were reflecting the light coming through the windows.
She didn’t know where to look first.
She held her ticket so tightly it was beginning to bend.
She handed it to the conductor and watched him punch it for her.

He handed it back and she giggled.
We had been preparing for this trip for a while.
Up to this point, it was exactly like everything we talked about.

We finally reached the city.
My purse and extra bag in hand.
My daughter’s hand in my other hand.
We walked up the stairs to the street.

My aunt worked for the law department of the city at that time.
Her office building was large and imposing with a gold eagle in front.
My daughter could have looked at the eagle all day.
She also liked climbing the marble steps.

We took the elevator up to my aunt’s floor.
We were a much-needed diversion for many of the secretaries.
We were a topic of conversation for my aunt.
She walked us around from office to office, introducing us to everyone.

My daughter enjoyed seeing her picture on my aunt’s desk.
She liked playing with a small paperweight.
She picked up any scrap of paper she found and threw it away in the trashcan.
We left to go out to lunch nearby.

It was a delightful afternoon.
Since my aunt had never married, we were her family.
My children were the children she never had.
She loved us deeply.

It was time to leave.
We headed back to the train station.
I knew my daughter would be asleep on my lap within minutes.
I began to feel tired, too, as the train made its way back to the suburbs.

We got back to the train station.
I couldn’t wait to get in the car and drive home.
There was dinner to prepare.
There was a load of laundry to do.

Bags in hand, my daughter’s hand in my other hand, we walked to the parking lot.
My car that was parked so close to the entrance was gone.
I looked in disbelief at the cars around me.
They looked familiar; I was sure this is where my car used to be.

I walked up to a ticket window and asked where my car could have possibly gone.
Where did you park it? a man asked gruffly.
Right there, I said pointing.
That’s a tow-away zone, he said, as if he said it a hundred times before.

I wanted to cry in frustration and exhaustion.
Why was it towed away?
He seemed annoyed at me.
Didn’t you see the sign?

What sign?
Visibly agitated, he instructed someone to show me the sign.
There was a metal pole but a banner covered the sign.
It was impossible for anyone to read it.

We walked back to the ticket counter and the other gentleman explained.
The ticket man softened a bit and seemed to feel empathy for this mother and toddler.
I was directed to call the place where the towed cars were kept.
It was after hours by this time, so my car would have to stay there overnight.

I called my husband who came and got us.
We rested on an uncomfortable bench until he arrived.
This was not part of our books on train rides.
This was one of those things that happen sometimes and show you what you are made of.

The Pharisees and Sadducees came to Jesus and tested Him by asking Him to show them a sign from heaven. He replied, “When evening comes, you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red,’ and in the morning, ‘Today it will be stormy for the sky is red and overcast.’ You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret the signs of the time. A wicked and adulterous generation looks for a miraculous sign, but none will be given it except the sign of Jonah.” Jesus then left them and went away. (Matthew 16:1-4)

God gave us His Word with its promises.
God gave us His Word with its directions and warnings.
How well do we heed God’s Word?
Are we so enthralled by the world that God’s Word gets covered up?

Are we so busy spotlighting worldly things; we fail to see God’s Word?
The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of the Lord stands forever.
(Isaiah 40:6-8)

I don’t want to miss any portion of God’s Word.
I don’t want to cover His Word up with other things of lesser importance.
His Word is to be heeded.
His Word is to be treasured.

The Word is very near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart so you may obey it.
(Deuteronomy 30:14)