Three Rights Make a Left

RECONNECTING WITH THE SIMPLE LIFE

Last week I promised to share some big news about our family. Here it is: This will be our last Christmas living in Forney. On Friday December 10th Lori and I bought a beautiful home built in 1892 on 9 1/2 acres two miles NE of the little town of Lone Oak, Texas in Hunt County. Our son Kaleb plans to build a home on the property with his wife Amanda and our two grandsons.

Lori and I moved to Forney almost four decades ago when the town’s population was about 2500 and The Forney Jackrabbits played in Division 2-A. The only places in town to eat were Dairy Queen, the Café downtown and Bingo Truck Stop.

We didn’t just live here, we embraced the smalltown culture and became a part of it. All three of our kids and all three of our grandkids were born while we lived in our house on Woodcrest. Lori worked and commuted to Dallas every day, first to downtown then later she had to fight traffic to drive to Midway and LBJ until she retired several years ago. Since retirement most of you know her as the Election Judge and teachers at Criswell Elementry know her as the volunteer the teachers and kids love.

I served a term on the Forney City Council, several years on the Forney EDC where I also served as President, and two terms as the Precinct 2 Kaufman County Commissioner.

We will truly miss all of our friends here in Forney. However, there is a simpler life to be had, and that is the life we have chosen for our retirement years. The new home we are buying is over twice the size of our home in Forney and I am fond of saying that while most people our age are downsizing, we are going the other direction. The best part is that we are buying the house from a contractor who is leaving it with us in excellent condition. The remodel job he and his wife have done is stunning. Before we closed on it I had ordered a metal plaque that says “Built 1892 Lori’s House 2021”. I gave her the plaque when we signed the closing papers.

To make our New/Old empty house a showplace, Lori and I have been buying antiques. We rented a 10 x 20 storage room and filled it up. We filled up our garage and now we even have antiques in our living room. It turns out that now is a great time to buy antique furniture because demand is low. We have bought some things from friends here in Forney that we will always cherish as a connection to our time in this wonderful town.

We have a problem: We have little idea when we will be able to move into our house. At closing we learned that one of the sellers has Covid and is in the hospital as we speak. So even though we own the house we are being patient about trying to move in while giving him plenty of time and prayers to heal. We will likely move sometime in January. I won’t give his name but would ask that you keep our new Christian friend in your prayers.

As you can imagine it is a bitter-sweet moment for us. We are looking forward to the move but we will miss the friendships we have made in Forney and Kaufman County. We love you guys.