Soon it will be September. Students will go back to school. Some parents may be in the process of buying a car for their son / daughter who goes to high school or university. I would like to share with you the following experience.
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As mentioned in my other posts, our sons did not have a car when they attended colleges. We had only one car. We drove to see them or pick them up every few weeks. When our older son graduated from the university, the economy in our state was very slow. He could not find a job in the field he majored in. Knowing the financial situation we were in, he went to work in a store right after he came home. When the store had an opening for a night shift full-time job, he asked the manager for the position. As his mother, I did not want him to stay up all night working instead of sleeping, but he bravely took up the challenge in life. He helped paying the bills as he did since high school. For months, I drove him back and forth from work. It was hectic because I had to take care of the restaurant business. In time, our son saved some money as a down payment for a used car. In Nov. 2003, he finally got a better job. It was in a city far from where we lived. Therefore, he had to rent an apartment near where he worked. (Re Happy Mother's Day to all the mothers ... Our younger son also got a good job a month later.)
In 2004, we sold the restaurant business. After paying back the money that we had borrowed from our relatives, we had only a little bit of money left. In other words, we lost almost all the money we had saved before we opened the restaurant, but it was a big relief for me because we did not owe anybody money anymore. For weeks and months, I woke up smiling. I was grateful that we survived! The touches of the Divine had transformed me. My husband, on the other hand, could not feel how I felt. He was depressed during the restaurant years, and continued to be for years afterward.
I thought I would never worked in a restaurant again. However, my husband's friend asked me to help him just a few hours during the weekends answering the phone and taking care of the cash register. (Re There is extra money in the drawer of the cash register )
One day, my husband could not start the car. (After the accident as mentioned in What do we do when we have dreams of fear, the car broke down from time to time.) I looked at our old, damaged car. Suddenly, I announced, "It is time to buy another car!" My husband was surprised to hear that. He said he had not found a job, and we did not have enough money to buy a car. I was adamant about buying a car. In the city we lived, we did not have buses or subway. I said, "Without a reliable car, you cannot go to work even if you find a job. We do not have the money to buy a new car, but we can put a down payment for a certified used car." Coincidentally, our older son was home for he had the day off. He said he would co-sign the contract if the car dealer asked him to. He drove us to look for a car. We found a good used car, and the monthly payment was affordable. When our younger son came home from work, he could not believe we had bought a car. He thought we were joking for we had not talked about buying a car. It was truly incredible that we found a good car in one day! When we helped our sons to look for their first cars, it took several days.
Oh, only later did I realize the importance of my decision to buy a car on that day!
About a month later, our older son was in an accident. A young man suddenly drove a car out of a side street at high speed hitting our son's car. Luckily, our son was not hurt, but his car was totaled. He had not included car rental in his auto insurance. I told the boss at the restaurant that I had to take some days off. My husband and I drove to our son's apartment. On our way, I realized how great the Divine was that we were guided to buy a reliable car before this happened. We stayed in our son's apartment, and let him use our car to go to work.
After our son came home from work, we went to different car dealerships to look for a car. Our son wanted the same model. The prices of used cars had gone up quite a bit. After a few days, our son still could not find a car. I prayed to the angels and guides for help.
One day, I got a pamphlet in a store on cars for sale. Looking through the ads, I found a very good deal. It was the model that my son liked and it had low mileage. I told my son the good news. He said he had already found one online. He had called that dealership and made an appointment with a salesperson. It was a 2001 that had about 37,800 miles. I said the one I found was a 2003, had only 12,000 miles, and the price was cheaper than the one he found. My son said he did not want to waste anymore time looking for a car. He would buy the one he found. Knowing my son (i.e. his personality), I knew he would not listen. I let it go.
We drove to that dealership. The salesperson in the office greeted our son by his name, but did not greet us as if we weren't there. He said he did not know where was the car that our son had called about. Our son asked if there were other cars of the same model. The salesperson said, "Let's go outside and look around." He guided our son to walk to the farthest end of the used-car lot. My husband and I stayed in the office.
The office was on a raised platform in a corner of the used-car lot. Windows on one side faced the used-car lot; while windows on the salesperson's side were not. At one point, I stood up and looked outside from the salesperson's side. Right below the window were three cars of the model that our son was looking for. One of them was with the price tag that my son had told me. There was no "sold" sticker on the car which meant it was still available. The cars were hidden from view. I realized the salesperson had intentionally led my son to walk far away from the office. My son had called ahead of time. The salesperson hid the car for he did not want to sell it to my son. I did not tell my husband. I asked him to leave the office with me. We waited outside for our son and the salesperson to return. After a while, they came back and walked to where we were. The salesperson said he was sorry he could not find the car. He asked if our son was interested in buying other makes and models. Our son said 'no'. I stared at the salesperson. He looked away. I said to my son, "Let's go."
In the car, I did not say anything about the salesperson or the cars that were hidden from view. My son expressed his disappointment that 'they' could not find the car in the car lot. I asked if he would go to see the car that I talked about. He said 'yes'. At the other dealership, the salesperson was courteous. We test drove the car. It was a good car. There was a minor problem, and the dealer promised to fix it. My husband wanted me to get involved with the negotiation of buying the car. I did not. I told him, "Let our son handle all the negotiation. He is a grown up." I knew my son. He liked to handle things by himself.
My husband and I walked outside to wait in the vast used car parking lot. Suddenly, we heard loud sounds made by birds. High up in the sky and right above us were six or seven big white birds. The sounds they made were so loud that got both of our attention. They remained above us continuing to make a lot of sounds. I knew then the angels had helped in our son's search for a good car. I looked at them and thanked them with all my heart. The white birds stayed above us for a while before disappearing into the boundless sky. It was not uncommon to see birds in car lots, but I did not see any that day except those above us. My husband was amazed at this special appearance of the birds too.
Our son walked out of the office. He looked confident and happy. He said the car was a much better deal than the one he had intended to buy. I smiled and said, "Sometimes things do not happen as we have planned, but all is well. A delay may not be a delay for better things or solutions may lie ahead."
At the previous car dealership, I did not tell my son about the cars below the windows. I did not want him to buy a car from someone who did not want his business. My son had made the appointment with his first and last name. He spoke English as other Americans because he was born here. However, the racist salesperson probably understood our son was a Chinese from his last name. There were always people that were racist or narrow-minded. Sometimes I spoke up, and at other times I did not. It depended on the situation. My son was already under some stress because of the accident and the search for a car. I did not talk to him about the salesperson for I did not want to add to his stress. I was very peaceful that day. As I remained in peace, my loved ones were in peace too.
If you are in the process of buying a car for your son / daughter, you may pray for help too. The angels and guides are always glad to help. In my case, other than numbers, birds are often the messengers, the confirmation, and the signs from the Loving Divine.
Love and blessings,
Q of D
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