AT THE DAIRY QUEEN

“For Paul has determined to sail by Ephesus, because he would not spend the time in Asia: for he hasted, if it were possible for him, to be at Jerusalem the day of Pentecost.” (Acts 20:16)

The above verse comes from the narrative of the Apostle Paul’s Third Missionary Journey. At that point in Acts chapter twenty, Paul was en route from Greece to Jerusalem and he was HURRYING to get to Jerusalem by the day of Pentecost. WHen you’re on a long journey and you’re also in a hurry there’s a certain DYNAMIC to that experience!

Many of you know we just completed a week’s vacation to Springfield, Missouri which included “straight through” car trips between Massachusetts and Missouri. As a Bible College student in the 1970s as well as an Evangel University parent in the 2000s, I’ve made that trip a number of times. When you’ve made the same long trip like that many, many times, there can be certain traditions that develop. We’ve developed a few such traditions for the Massachusetts-Missouri drive. Somewhere around 2005, my daughter Amy and I saw one of those highway “FOOD” signs in western Ohio advertising a Dairy Queen at the next exit. It was just what we were in the mood for! We got off there at Arlington Road in Brookville, Ohio and drive the three-quarters of a mile or so to the Dairy Queen. Brookville is one of those really cool small midwestern communities: clean, middle-class; a “baseball, the flag, and motherhood” kind of a place. On our first Brookville Dairy Queen visit, their building had recently been reconstructed. There were impressive photos in the dining area of local people working on the remodeling project. There was understandable pride in the Dairy Queen’s refurbishment. At Dairy Queen, I usually get a soft serve vanilla cone with a chocolate dip. They’re admittedly very messy to eat, but lots of fun and delicious! On some trips, it was Amy and I who stopped there. ON others it was my other daughter Rachel and I who stopped. On St. Patrick’s Dat 2008, my wife Mary Ann and son Jon and I stopped on the way home from Amy and David’s wedding. That day, they served GREEN soft serve ice cream.

On this year’s trip to Missouri, like Paul, I was in a hurry. At Brookville, I was VERY tempted to stop at Dairy QUeen, but decided to forego the treat. Last Saturday, on the way home, I was determined to have us stop at Brookville Dairy Queen. I’d been imagining eating that chocolate dipped vanilla cone for over a hundred miles. I was so excited to drive down Arlington road and see that Dairy Queen sign. But something didn’t seem right. There were NO cars in the parking lot! I turned in. THere was nobody inside the restaurant. It was closed. The drive thru sign was bare.

What a let down!

As I drove away, I wondered why the sign was still up in front of the building and even on the highway “FOOD” sign. WHY did it close? Was the economy THAT bad? Were we the ONLY family who enjoyed making stops at Brookville Dairy Queen during long trips? I stopped at a Brookville gas station and filled the car’s tank. Later I thought about that- I mean, the effect on the local economy. I would never have stopped at that gas station if I hadn’t pulled off the highway for Dairy Queen. When one business closes, there’s a ripple effect that hurts other businesses, too.

I don’t know “the story behind the story” of why the Brookville, Ohio Dairy Queen closed, but I’m sad about it. That’s the end of that special tradition for us.

Yes, I’ve got to admit it: I don’t like change. But change is constant. Now, the LORD doesn’t change, but this world sure does! I was reminded of that last Saturday afternoon.