This is probably the first blog I’ve ever written about an inanimate object, but bringing Sparky home was somewhat of an ordeal.

First, I live in Florida now. Florida is hot. Florida is a mere 160 miles wide at the widest point. It is not only bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and the Gulf to the west—but the entire state is swampland that has been drained and built over, and swamp and mosquitoes break out in unexpected places—along with humidity.

Because of the heat and humidity, I wanted a light-colored car. I spent close to a week searching all the used cars I could find in my price range (cheap) for a yellow, or even a white car. All the used cars in my price range were dark or grey. No slight to Scotland, but after 15 years living there where it rains nearly every day and is usually cloudy even when it’s not raining—I’m done with grey.

Enter Sparky. Gold, shining brightly yellow in the sunlight. I visited the dealership and told the sales person that I would return to purchase the car after I had time to transfer my money into my bank account. He offered a better plan. I could sign the paperwork that day and leave my bank details and they would wait for two weeks before they claimed the payment. The finance director agreed with this plan and promised to wait to put the money through until I called and let him know the money transfer was complete. I woke up the next morning to find my bank account overdrawn by $10,000, plus a $35 overdraft charge.

I was furious about the broken promise and told the finance director that I didn’t want the car. I didn’t want to do business with someone I couldn’t trust. I demanded the refund of the $10,000, and pointed out how embarrassing it was for me to be overdrawn by that much in a bank account that hadn’t even been open three weeks yet.

The finance director informed me that he would call me back with a solution—but he didn’t. Not only did he not call me back—after I called him several times because he didn’t call back—he blocked my phone number. He denies that, of course, but the fact remains that he could no longer be reached at that number by me—but that phone number got answered when it wasn’t my phone number showing at his end.

Now I was in a deep dilemma. Had I bought a car? Had I not bought a car? The bank ultimately sent the money back into my account because the overdraft was so ridiculously huge. Meanwhile, my sister scrambled to get the rest of my money—the money I had sent to her to keep for me—into my bank account. That, however, took a few days, plus added two $50 charges for requesting same day deposits and credits to my account. Meantime, not a word from the dealership about Sparky. Had I bought a car? Had I not bought a car? Would the money that was returned to my account suddenly disappear again before I had the rest of the money secured? Would I wake up to find myself facing another overdraft?

Three different family members told me to forget Sparky and refuse to take possession from the dealership that had treated me so shabbily. One of my family members wanted to help by calling the Attorney General and reporting the dealership for a fraudulent transaction. But, I liked Sparky. And I liked the sales person. He wasn’t the one who had broken the promise. I didn’t want him punished for something that wasn’t his fault.

Most of all, I trusted God. I told myself that if Sparky was the car God wanted me to have, the sale would go through, and that if Sparky wasn’t right for me—God would use the mix-up at the dealership to protect me from a wrong decision. My two favorite Bible verses are: “In everything give thanks, for this is the will of Christ Jesus concerning you,” 1 Thessalonians 5:18, and “All things work together for good to those who love the Lord,” Romans 8:28.

So I waited and prayed, and now more than a week after saying, “I do,” to Sparky, Sparky sits in the front yard. Ironically, as of this writing—the money is still in my bank account.

As Shakespeare might have said, “To call or not to call?” That is the question.

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