It was a crisp sunny morning in East Texas, with a dewy sparkle on the ground and the promise of springtime in the air.

You may remember my dear home health patient, Miss Millie, who lived near me and was therefore the first one I would see in the mornings. Well, Miss Hadie Pearl was her best friend and was involved in one of Miss Millie’s greatest adventures.

The two had decided to get together for coffee on this particular morning. As I said, these octagenarians were the closest of friends, having grown up together, taught school together, and attended the same church all their lives. These ladies approached old age with wit, spunk, and a lively twinkle in the eye. They loved life and always brought the fun  ~ whether they were shopping, quilting, attending church, or simply enjoying time together.

As they finished their coffee, Millie told Hadie Pearl that she needed to renew her auto insurance since she’d begun driving again. (She’d previously been asked NOT to drive because she had an unfortunate habit of cruising in the ditch.)  This decision wouldn’t have been sanctioned by the rest of the community, needless to say. Heaven help us!

Hadie Pearl explained, “Why, the insurance office is right down the street! All you have to do is turn around and go back down my street until you reach the highway. Then turn left, and it will be on your left, just there on the corner. You can’t miss it.”

Now Miss Hadie Pearl lived in Mineola, which is a small town northeast of Dallas, Texas. Mineola was the town in which Miss Millie had every intention of purchasing her auto insurance. So off she went with a cheery wave. She was determined to get her insurance renewed so that she could legally return to driving. And if you knew Miss Millie, you knew she was unflappable, unstoppable.

However, Miss Millie never made it to the insurance office that day. Oh, she was perfectly fine at the end of the day ~ no worries there! She did, however, end up at the police station in Garland, Texas ~ eighty three miles away ~  that evening. No one knows exactly how she made it there safely, but she was no worse for the wear.  And of course they don’t have insurance there ~ just an office full of helpful folks who escort little old ladies back home when they make a wrong turn.

And that’s the true story of the day that Miss Mille went to town.