The New Pick-up

Having ten children and quite a few foster children, there were times when the money for our family seemed like it should have been on the endangered species list. But by working hard and budgeting carefully, we always got by. But one day, I had some significant concerns.

I was working at my office during my lunch break at the college when I received a call.

“Hello, is this Daris?” the man on the other end asked.

“It is,” I replied.

“Well, your truck is ready,” he said. “You can pick it up right after work if you want.”

My mind and adrenalin kicked into high gear. I tried to think of why we would have our pickup down at the local dealership. I thought it might be a prank.

“So, who is this?” I asked.

“This is Frank Hamblin at the dealership.”

I knew Frank well, and it was definitely his voice. One thing about living in a rural community, I knew nearly everyone at the businesses in town. But I still couldn’t figure out what truck he was talking about.

“So, did my wife bring our pickup in for an oil change or something?” I asked.

He laughed. “No. This is the new pickup that came in today on the car transport. Your wife finished all the paperwork for it yesterday.”

I was stunned. I knew we couldn’t afford a new pickup, and I was sure Donna wouldn’t do that without asking me. We always discussed big purchases and ensured we agreed on them before moving forward.

When we were first married, we found the perfect way to budget. If I wanted something expensive, Donna said we couldn’t afford it. If she wanted something expensive, I said the same thing. That pretty much took care of things. There were a few times I had purchased a gift for her as a surprise that was a bit more than we usually spent, but we are talking a couple hundred dollars, not thousands.

I could hardly get my voice to work. “The new pickup?” I questioned.

“Yes,” he replied. “And it’s a beauty, an incredible blue three-quarter ton. When Donna filled out the paperwork yesterday, she said it would be perfect for all the farm work you needed to do. And believe me, with its V-8 engine, this baby will pull anything you need.”

Our “farm” consisted of less than four acres, with a couple of cows, a horse, some lambs, and a bunch of chickens. I would love a truck like that, but I was sure my little pickup would do what I needed. But one thing I knew for sure: we couldn’t pay for it. I felt even more confused.

“You know, I better call and talk to Donna about it,” I said.

“No problem,” Frank replied. “But if you need a ride down here to get it, we’d be happy to pick you up.”

“Thanks,” I said. “But I drove a car to work.”

I tried to get hold of Donna, but her line was busy. She was probably dealing with something one of the children forgot for school. I left to teach my afternoon classes, and my brain was whirring so much that I made plenty of mistakes in the math equations. But finally, I was able to return to my office. The blinking phone light indicated a missed call. I checked the number, and it was Frank, so I called him.

“About that new truck,” he said. “I was talking to the other salesman and realized I had the wrong person. The last name was the same, he worked at the college, and his wife was named Donna. I’m sorry about the confusion.”

When I got home, Donna could tell I was tired. “Is something the matter?” she asked.

Her shocked look was priceless when I said, “It’s just all the adrenaline rush I got from the new pickup you bought today.”