A Sweet Road Trip
by: Lori Doner Jones
A Sweet Road Trip
Years ago, the first Krispy Kreme opened in Mississauga, and I surprised my father by picking him up one Saturday morning and driving him out to this brand new Krispy Kreme.
We both love donuts, so I thought he would really enjoy this little road trip! It was almost an hour drive, and when we arrived it was so busy, as it was their opening week, so we stood in line for hours in a tent just outside the doors, waiting for a taste of the anticipated delicious-ness! The staff even brought full sized sample donuts to the people in line because the wait was so long. By the time we actually made it into the store, we had already been generously sampling all of the sweet goodness and were a little full already, but we still bought a few dozen to take home, so everyone else could enjoy too!
It was sort of ridiculous to go all that way and wait in line for so long for donuts, but we had so much fun together and my dad loved talking to all the people in line, as he was always one to make friends, from strangers, wherever he went. So it was totally worth the drive and time, not just for the donuts, but for the memory of us together.
In 2020, just before the world shut down, I saw an ad on Instagram for a place in Hamilton called "Donut Monster" that makes fresh donuts, and the desire to re-live my Krispy Kreme memory was ignited! At the time I tried to convince my partner in crime, (a.k.a. Dad) to put on some elastic-waisted pants and gear up for the trip, but my father hadn’t been feeling very well, so he felt unable to go. My younger daughter, sensing my disappointment, jumped up and volunteered to be his stand-in. We would go get the donuts and bring them back to Grandpa!
That was 2 years ago – just before Covid, but my daughter had a day off due to the teacher strikes, so on the scheduled strike day, the two of us piled in the car, with empty stomachs to make the trip to Hamilton. My oldest daughter, thought this was a crazy trip and stayed home with her Grandma, but Peyton and I were off for adventure! It took over an hour to arrive, but once there we discovered a cute little donut store, with lots of unique flavours to choose from. We sat in the store, and people-watched, we chatted and laughed together, we filled our bellies with sugar coated pastries and bought several more to take home with us for Grandpa and even for the sister who stayed home! We even bought Peyton a souvenir t-shirt; and her smile was enough to make the long trip more than worthwhile.
How would things change, if we were to just draw closer…. As close as we can get?
Just as we were leaving my husband called to see how our day was going, and before he hung up he said, “let her sit in the front seat on the way home”. At the time she had always sat in the back with her sister for safety, though she was almost as tall as me. Under his encouragement I looked at her and said “Hey, do you want to sit up front?” Her eyes lit up with the idea of this special treat of sitting in the front seat and she jumped in with a big grin on her face (and maybe some sugar frosting), looking like she’d finally arrived! We headed home, full of donuts and giggles.
In the front seat, everything changed, it was like she came alive! We listened to her music, she put her devices away, she sang songs to me, she was more engaged and chatty....maybe it was that I could hear her better or that she said more because of how close she was, but the whole dynamic changed between us, and I thought how fortunate it was that my husband had encouraged me to let her sit up front. It completely altered our interaction. It had made our trip that much more awesome, and made us feel that much closer to each other.
Maybe we are missing the dynamic of getting Him “closer”.
So I got to thinking, isn’t that how life is with Jesus? Maybe we are actually with Him, but He’s somewhere in the backseat, where we are communicating through side glances and the rear-view mirror. Maybe we are missing the dynamic of getting Him “closer”. If Peyton had stayed in the backseat that day, we still would have had a great time, but I would have missed the blessing of her right beside me, close enough to touch. I would have missed her sweet smiles, and clever little jokes, I would have missed knowing what was in her secret thoughts and letting her music play and her songs fill the air, I would have missed the intimacy and tenderness of having as her as "close" as she could get - and even worse, I would have never known what I had missed, or even that I had missed anything at all.
When she was little, Peyton used to cuddle close to me before she went to sleep and she’d say in a tiny singsong voice– “let’s see if we can get a –n- y closer…” and she’d snuggle even tighter and hug me more fiercely like she didn’t ever want to let go.
I wonder if God is waiting for ME to say to Him, “Let’s see if we can get any closer…” I wonder if I am missing the blessing of not letting him into the front seat. I wonder if I can get closer…
So I challenge you in this next week – are you missing out? Is He with you, but not as close as He could be? How would things change, if we were to just draw closer…. As close as we can get?
Father, let us experience closeness with you. Let us feel your presence and encounter you with wonder and expectation - More than we could ever fathom, more than we could ever even ask for … Jesus, let’s see if we can get a-n-y closer…in Jesus’ name, Amen
Lori Doner Jones leads the Women’s Ministry at Springvale Church, and is the founder of REVIVE. REVIVE challenges women to seek God with determined purpose by being a space of opportunity and encouragement for women who are called to teach and speak. Lori is a wife of almost 21 years and mother to two sweet daughters.
Learn more about REVIVE, access its devotionals, or view its current video series here: www.readyforrevival.ca.