Signing the lease, we needed a name for our new center. My own children reminded me that every time I introduced the kids, either performing or modeling, I would say “Yesterday’s dream is now Tomorrow’s Promise — and all children ARE Tomorrow’s Promise.” From that moment on that was our name.
As I painted the new facility, I kept thinking of that name and God’s words “That I give you a rainbow as a reminder of my forever promise” So, I painted a mural on the wall of a huge rainbow in pastel colors. One side of the rainbow had a group of life size children in front of it. The other side a treasure chest with books, and a few toys.
On the front door I painted a child walking up a hill, a puppy at its side and in the sky, the pastel rainbow. As I was painting that mural, one freezing evening in February, my mother came to the doorway and said, “it’s too cold, stop and have a hot cup of coffee, and go home! My remark to her came out of the blue… I said “Next we are going to build a school!”
Of course any reasonable person would have answered back as my mother did “What are you saying?! Build a school! You don’t even have this place open yet!”
“I know!” I reassured her, “but WE WILL HAVE A SCHOOL, AND A CAMP TOO!”
She just shook her head and smiled.
A few days later, while going from one place to another, teaching programs for the Y, I was driving down a busy county road and passed a Racquetball Facility and an Ice Rink. Near these facilities there was a long, ranch style, brick building. As I was stopped for a light, I had time to look at all three buildings and the property around them. As the light changed I heard this voice telling me .”See that building there? It is to be a school, teaching of all my glory. See all the property? Ask, and it shall be yours…”
RIGHT! OK, I’ll go look at the property… Who should I talk to?
“Just Ask!” was the reply. So I drove behind the ice rink and there were acres, and acres of beautiful green grass, hills, and woods. Along side the brick building was a swimming pool. Near the pool were some maintenance men, cleaning the fenced in area. I walked over to them and asked what the brick building was used for. They said it was a hockey camp used 6 weeks out of the year. I asked who owed the property, and I was told that ALL the property (the 3 buildings, and all the surrounding property) belonged to a well known doctor in the area.
They suggested that I speak to his son, who was in the pro-shop located in the Ice Palace building. I asked the son a bunch of questions about the three buildings and the property, and then asked if could lease some of the property to run a camp for the “Y”. He said he would ask his father.
In the meantime, I WAS ASKING MY HEAVENILY FATHER!!!
© Carole Devecka God Given Daisies CaroleDevecka@comcast.net
To see the first story in this series: The Promise
Next story: A Promise Fulfilled