“Well, you always want an adventure!” Lynda locked the car doors.

It’s an interesting story how we had gotten to that point. Lynda is my best friend and cousin. We played ball together, ran around together, and went to the same middle and high school. Needless to say, over the years, we have had various adventures, but this experience one was unlike any others.

Lynda bought tickets to the Creation Museum so we could go on a girls’ day trip. Since we were both off for Columbus Day, we decided to drive up the Sunday evening before and spend the night. That way we could arrive at the museum early the next morning and spend all day there.

Sounded like a good plan.

We were both so busy that we didn’t get around to making hotel reservations. I told Lynda we should be able to find a place to stay. Boy did I have that wrong.

It was around 9:30 PM when we pulled into a hotel parking lot in Florence, Kentucky. The hotel seemed to very nice, but unfortunately for us, there were no available rooms.

So, we hopped back in her car and headed to another hotel. As we were driving to it, we got behind a police car. We joked about it going to the same hotel. As the police car drove past the hotel, we pulled into the parking lot.

When we went inside, there was a sign about construction and remodeling and it was in a mess. And unlike the other hotel, there were no other guests in the lobby. There wasn’t anybody at the check-in desk either. We dinged the bell. Nothing. We dinged the bell again. Nothing.

Now I am beginning to feel frustrated. We were both tired and sore from riding for over 4 hours. And it was dark and we were in a strange town.

As we walked out, a police car was parked at the curb and the policeman passed us as he walked toward the door.

“I wonder if that was the same police car that was in front of us,” Lynda said we got back into her car.

“What does difference does it make? We need to go so we can get a room somewhere else before they are all taken.” I did NOT want to end up sleeping in her car.

“We can’t go anywhere just yet,” Lynda stated.

“Why not?” I asked.

“Because that cop saw us.”
“So what? He looked right at us. If he was going to question us, he would’ve have stopped us. We need to move on and find a room before they’re all taken.” All I wanted at that point was to lie down and rest.

That’s when we heard the sirens.

An ambulance raced down the road and turned into the hotel parking lot. And guess where it stopped. Right behind Lynda’s car. At that point I wondered if her SUV could make across the grass to get to the road.

Then another police car with its sirens blaring pulled in behind the ambulance. Next came the firetruck. It couldn’t pull all the way into parking lot and stopped next to the road.

Lynda and I looked at each other.

“What if we just missed a robbery?” her voice rose. “Maybe somebody was shot, stabbed, or even killed? They could’ve been lying and bleeding in the back while we were dinging the bell!”

Fear crept up my spine. “What if the killer is out roaming the grounds?” In my mind I envisioned a guy in a ski mask with a gun or large knife. “Lock the doors!”

She did and that’s when she said, “Well, you always want an adventure!”

I’ll admit it. I do love having a good little fun adventure from time to time. I always have, but at that moment, I was frightened. I thought about my family and home back in Tennessee and it felt as if we were millions of miles away.

We both sat there and prayed. Then God placed a realization in my head. “Hey, the cops aren’t searching the grounds with dogs. They’re not looking for anybody.” I felt instant relief.

“So it’s just probably a medical emergency,” Lynda added.

Being the storyteller that I am, I said, “You know, this is going to be an exciting story.”

“Somebody could be dead and you’re enjoying the excitement.”

“Hey, I have already prayed for whoever they’re helping,” I countered.

Lynda sighed. “In that case, how about a picture of the ambulance? That way you can show what happened”

“That’s a great idea!”

So, Lynda took a selfie picture with the ambulance behind us and it’s flashing lights. As you can see in the picture, we are both smiling and I even gave a thumbs up. By the way, I really did pray for the person needing help.

Soon they brought out a young man on a gurney and placed him in the ambulance. He had on an oxygen mask and was sitting up and very alert. After all the emergency vehicles left, we pulled out and drove to the hotel that was behind the one with all the action.

It was more of an upscale hotel and we didn’t try it earlier because we were afraid it would be very expensive, but now we were now at the point of being desperate and exhausted.

You know what, not only did it have rooms available, it was also reasonably priced. I recounted our harrowing tale to the young lady at the check-in counter. She laughed and said, “I wouldn’t take my dog to that place.”

“For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, saith the Lord, thoughts of peace, and not of evil, to give you an expected end.” Jeremiah 29:11 (KJV)

God knew what we were going to encounter before we even planned our trip. Nothing surprises Him. And for some reason, He needed us to have our little adventure. As for me, it made me realize that I take many blessings for granted and I needed to be more thankful.

We are planning another trip to the Creation Museum with more friends tagging along. And we will be making reservations this time. I may see if I can talk Lynda into driving by the other hotel for fun. Who knows what we may expereince this time.