Since we’re staying put indefinitely, I’m choosing to look at the bright side and “make hay while the sun shines,” as my mom used to say. Overall, the weather here in the Ozarks has been pretty good, and some days are particularly outstanding🙏🏽—yesterday being one of them. It was a perfect day to go downtown—somewhere we haven’t been all year—and I had the whole day planned out. First breakfast somewhere, then a stop at the Branson Centennial Museum, and then after that, some shopping. It would be perfect.
Starting out, the day had all the earmarks of a great day. Smooth sailing right into town, finding a great parking space, and getting seated immediately once inside the restaurant—which, by the way, was serving one of my favorites as the lunch special, fried chicken with all the fixings. We ordered our meals and sat back, taking in the surroundings. We’d never been to this restaurant before.
All of a sudden, the lights went out. Everyone stopped talking and looked around. It was obvious what had happened.
Just then the cook, wearing a headlamp atop his head, came out of the kitchen, our food in hand. He smiled as he placed the plates on the table and made a funny remark about the timing of a power outage. Since it was only a few minutes past 11 o’clock—just past breakfast and just before lunch—the restaurant was relatively empty and we ate our meals in tranquil bliss. It was some of the best fried chicken I’d ever eaten!🙏🏽
The door was propped open to allow fresh air to enter, and we soon found out from passersby that a blown transformer was the culprit. That meant that all the businesses in that area were temporarily closed. My plans for the day evaporated into thin air.
Experiencing downtown Branson coming to a sudden halt was an unexpected turn of events that brought unforeseen blessings. Store keepers and would-be customers made light of the situation that stopped all business. People smiled at one another and made small talk about the current state of things. There was a quiet acceptance of what was, and civility reigned. Of all days, I was grateful we chose that particular day to go downtown.🙏🏽 It was nice seeing people being nice to one another.
There were more blessings. Since it was such a pleasant day weather wise, we got our steps in by walking around a fair amount, and heaven only knows how much money I saved by being unable to shop. 🙏🏽 We discovered a great restaurant, Clocker’s Cafe😋 and I’m sure there will be another opportunity to go back downtown and do all the things I wanted to do. When the time is right.
The heart of man plans his way, but the Lord establishes his steps. ~Proverbs 16:9
