Lost and Found —Part 1

One of the last things he said to me as my marriage disintegrated was, “Who would have you?” Even sadder, I believed him! As a newly single mother, I felt so unwanted. Will God abandon me too? Still in shock, I struggled to help my two sons deal with their own pain. Then, unexpectedly, some church members strongly suggested we wouldn’t be welcome to worship at church anymore because we were now a “broken home.” One late autumn afternoon, I opened an envelope from my supportive mother. Out fell a church paper clipping that advertised an upcoming singles “hobo party” in my area. It also provided contact information. “Go to this party!” Mom had written.

My eldest son, a freshman at a boarding high school, said he would go with me to the party. I made the four-hour drive to visit him; then we drove to a hotel in San Jose to stay overnight since I’d brought Kitty, my gentle house cat.

Kitty was one of the few who still seemed to love me. And how I loved her! When my son and I took a wrong turn after dark in this unfamiliar city, the party host came to find us and lead us to his home, the location of the get-together.

He introduced himself as Russ. Near the end of the evening, Russ said, “Tomorrow morning some from our group are going over to sightsee in San Francisco and Alcatraz. Would you and your son like to come with us?” We went and had a wonderful day riding cable cars and visiting Chinatown, among other sights.

Back in San Jose, my son and I were about to get into our vehicle when Russ said, “Before you make the drive back to school and then home again, could I take you two to dinner? The Mexican restaurant opens in thirty minutes.” We followed Russ to the restaurant, where my son had time to walk Kitty.

Before going into the restaurant, I rolled down my window just enough to give her fresh air. After a wonderful meal, we returned to our car.

Kitty was gone! A house cat on big city streets —no chance of survival! Another unspeakable loss! My Christian walk has taught me that sometimes when we think we have lost our nearest and dearest, God is leading us toward one of the greatest “finds” of our life. Remember that.

Noni Weidemann