Where There’s a Will…

Soon, I want to buy a newer vehicle soon and will need the title to my old one. Thinking I knew where it was on my desk, I wasn’t too worried. But when I tried to put my hands on it I couldn’t find it. I’d put it away for safe keeping. Other papers were stacked in baskets, but not the title. Thus began the quest for the safe spot where I placed it. There were several days of fruitless searches as I emptied drawers holding or once held documents. I revisited and sorted and shuffled the old bills, tax forms, and receipts; thinking surely this was where it was and I’d just overlooked it. I was fishing in a dry well and moved the search upstairs to my writing office, that is to say one of the kid’s bedrooms that I claimed to keep my computer and unfinished scripts.

I really rolled up my sleeves to sort through myriad of brochures collected on travel trips. I found nearly fifty new postcards and other memorabilia. I threw out repeat copies of stories that found their ways into published books. I have a large cardboard egg box in the office closet where I toss bills after I’ve paid them. Maybe the title had accidentally ended up in there? But I found nothing of importance. I have two small filing cabinets. After reviewing, sorting, and tossing away unnecessary things I’d stored inside, I was no closer to finding the elusive paper. My brain refused to share the title’s whereabouts. At the same time, I was also looking for my Print Shop disc. No luck on either.

My daughter Amanda Yoder told me to calm down. I’ll be up on Saturday to help and if we can’t find it, I’ll help you send for a duplicate. True to her word, Saturday came and the hunt continued with her revisiting many of the places I’d already looked. I’m not quite a hoarder, because I do throw things away, but I do keep more things than I really should.

So to make a short story long, we sat down for a break and Amanda opened up a small fire safe that no longer locks because the key has been lost. It had been my mother-in-law’s. It protected birth certificates, military papers, and other family documents. I’d gone through it before and not found the title. One of the things I had added to the contents was my birth certificate and my will.

I knew they were inside. I’d already gone through those papers. While we were sitting, Amanda’s curiosity got the better of her and she decided to pull my will from its protective sleeve and read it. Not only was my last will and testament inside, but so was the title for my car. I’m still looking for the print Shop CD.