Good To Be Stuck In Northern Virginia

We were eager to get to Virginia Beach to prepare for our family reunion to begin on August 7. With our shiny Airstream perfectly (we thought) upgraded and our finances a bit shriveled, we stopped at Front Royal for an overnight stay at our membership park, Skyline Ranch Resort. At least there would be no campground fee. It was an extremely hot and muggy late afternoon; our countenance fell when we learned that we had no 50 amp electrical service in our trailer. We could run one A-C with 30 amp service, but it would be much more comfortable with two. The repaired 50 amp service had worked fine the night after it was “repaired” at the Airstream factory in Jackson Center, Ohio. The next day (Friday) Jerry called the only Airstream dealer in Virginia, Safford RV, in Fredericksburg to explain our plight. A friendly Service Manger agreed to check our rig on Monday morning, even though he was fully booked for the entire week. Then Jerry called the factory and asked them to pay the forthcoming bill at Safford. They did not say “no,” but they did say that the problem was probably something other than the ground fault breaker they had replaced.

Since we would be stuck at Skyline Ranch until Monday, we called our daughter, Robin, who lives 60 miles away in Fairfax to let her know our plight. While having empathy with us, Robin eagerly said that she and her family would come see us on Saturday for a day at the pool. She also invited us to watch our 11 year old grandson, Samuel, march in the Boy Scout Centennial Parade on Sunday in Washington, D.C. Temperature at Front Royal continued in the high 90s during the weekend, but the swimming was good, and we had a shady campsite. As well, we had the opportunity to see old RV friends dating back to 1985 at the ranch. Robin, Alejandro, and Samuel fit right in, as they had visited us there many times since moving to Virginia from Colombia, South America in 2002.

We drove to Falls Church, Virginia for Sunday school at our former church, Columbia Baptist. Jerry used to team teach the senior couples class before we moved to Texas in 2007. On this particular day, a young missionary couple served as visiting teachers and shared their vivid spiritual experiences in undeveloped countries and China. Their message, with video, was SO inspiring, and they are living proof that God is still at work in this world despite all of the pessimism expressed by many Christians.

With Sunday school completed, Robin and her family whisked us off to Metrorail; we soon would find ourselves on the Mall, where we could clearly see the White House, Smithsonian, Lincoln Memorial and the U.S. Capitol. It was a healthy walk to the sweltering tent where Samuel would meet his Boy Scout leaders and take his place in the big parade that lasted over two hours. Samuel brought Jerry’s 63-year old neckerchief and slide, which Grandpa proudly wore in honor of his memorable Boy Scout days in Rudolph, Ohio. Samuel was invited to march in this historic anniversary parade because he was one of the top popcorn salesmen in the nation for the Scouts last year. He was number three in the National Capital Region with sales totaling over $5000. It was an honor to march with other winners, even though their prescribed headgear had to be a big plastic ear of corn, which Samuel wore proudly, waving to the huge crowd with his engaging smile. Grandma was so envious that she had to exchange hats for this photo with her grandson. She may start a rival club to compete with the Red Hat Ladies; they could be called the Corny Ladies.

Monday morning we were at Safford RV early, and it took the mechanic less than an hour to identify and repair our 50 amp problem. There was a short in our shoreline cord connector; Jerry had told Airstream a week earlier that he suspected the cord as the culprit. After the mechanic talked with the Airstream Warranty Department, they paid the bill, and we were joyfully off to Virginia Beach. We often complain about delays that divert us from our goals. However, “We know that all things work together for good for those who love God, for those who are called according to His purpose.” (Romans 8:28). Had we not had our electrical problem, we would not have experienced a wonderful Sunday school lesson, nor would we have seen Robin’s family and shared a memorable experience with Samuel at the parade. God is the perfect planner.