WE BOUGHT A CAFE...
In June of 2017, our 22-year old daughter, Karissa, left for Peru on a year-long mission journey. I don't think I had ever missed anyone so much as I did on that day. A dear friend from church told me to keep busy, and I wouldn't miss her so much. Never in a million years did I know her words would be prophetic!
In March of 2017, my husband and I began looking for a building on the south side of Indianapolis to open a retail store to sell home-crafted items, and to display and sell his photographs. Real estate prices seemed out of this world for our limited budget. However, in June, I decided to look on the Metropolitan Indianapolis Board of Realtors (MIBOR) website to see if there were buildings that would match our price and our criteria. Lo! and Behold! A building came up in a little town of Westport, Indiana, showing a cafe for sale but a room that had enough space to also house a shop. So we decided we should give it some thought. Karissa left for Peru on June 7th, and we went to look at the building on June 8th. I felt it had great potential and wanted to explore the possibilities further. Noel, my husband, on the other hand, wasn't prepared to take that leap of faith, and I reluctantly decided to let him take the lead and make the final decision. I remember praying, "Lord, I hate the word submission. H
owever, I know that You made Noel the head of the house. If he ultimately decides that this is not the place to consider, then I will (ugh!) submit. BUT...I know in my heart of hearts it's the wrong decision." I had gone to the grocery on Saturday of that week, and that's when the reality of Karissa leaving really hit. I was going down the juice aisle, and I remembered how much Karissa likes juice. I held it together until I got home, and then I lost it completely. Noel and I both cried so hard. In fact, I had never heard or seen Noel cry so hard as I did that day as we both realized Karissa was gone for a whole year!!! IT WAS AWFUL!!! But Noel had made a decision. He said, "I think we should go for it. If we fail, we fail, but I think we should try." I was so skeptical, I said, "Don't just say that because you think it will make me happy. Say it because you honestly, truly BELIEVE IT!!." And he said he did believe it! We made an appointment to meet with the realtor and put an offer on the building/cafe on June 13th! More to follow...
