Little Trailer by the Road

By Gene Meacham

After serving as missionaries in Africa, the Montgomery family plans an unusual getaway: they decide to tow a small, homely recreational vehicle throughout the Southwest United States. David, Katherine, and their three daughters are a close family, but can the five of them survive weeks in such close quarters?

The family calls their RV Little Trailer, and it seems to take on a personality of its own as they embark on a grand trek from Texas to California and back again. The Montgomery grandparents and their Long, Long Trailer come along for the ride. ?

Together, the three-generation caravan travels over mountain ranges and through deserts on an exciting journey. On the way, they enjoy the tantalizing aroma of campfire cookouts, the stunning vistas of the Grand Canyon, the thrills and patriotism of Disneyland, and the grandeur of giant redwoods. ?

Little Trailer by the Road tells the story of a multigenerational Christian family who enjoy each others fellowship. They face challenges and obstacles, but their strong faith in God and reliance on prayer see them through. ?

• Language: English
• Publisher: WestBow Press
• Release date: Nov 13, 2015
• ISBN: 9781512700138

Gene Meacham

Gene Meacham served as a missionary in Africa for ten years. He has been a pastor and director of missions and an adjunct instructor in missions for Wayland Baptist University and Logsdon Theological Seminary. He now lives in Plainview, Texas, with his wife, Lavonne, where he enjoys teaching, writing, and keeping up with seven grandchildren.

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LITTLE TRAILER

BY THE ROAD

Gene Meacham

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Copyright © 2015 Gene Meacham.

Front cover photography by Gene Meacham

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

WestBow Press

A Division of Thomas Nelson & Zondervan

1663 Liberty Drive

Bloomington, IN 47403

www.westbowpress.com

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Because of the dynamic nature of the Internet, any web addresses or links contained in this book may have changed since publication and may no longer be valid. The views expressed in this work are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of the publisher, and the publisher hereby disclaims any responsibility for them.

Scripture taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION. Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Bible Publishers.

Any people depicted in stock imagery provided by Thinkstock are models, and such images are being used for illustrative purposes only.

Certain stock imagery © Thinkstock.

ISBN: 978-1-5127-0012-1 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-5127-0014-5 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-5127-0013-8 (e)

WestBow Press rev. date: 11/06/2015

Contents

Preface

Chapter One Puppy in the Window

Chapter Two Getting Packed

Chapter Three The Coyote and the Roadrunner

Chapter Four The First Night

Chapter Five The Hummingbird Feeder

Chapter Six White Sands

Chapter Seven The Long, Hot Day

Chapter Eight Lost Keys

Chapter Nine Birthday at Disneyland

Chapter Ten A Day of Rest

Chapter Eleven Grumpy’s Friend

Chapter Twelve Land of the Giants

Chapter Thirteen Yosemite

Chapter Fourteen Desert Night

Chapter Fifteen Grand Canyon

Chapter Sixteen David’s Secret

Chapter Seventeen A Forest of Stone

Chapter Eighteen Glorieta

Chapter Nineteen The Prayer Garden

Chapter Twenty Tres Ritos

Chapter Twenty-One Going Home

Chapter Twenty-Two Goodbye Little Trailer

To my father,

Harold Lane Meacham

1911-1988

Without his knowledge and

love for trailering

we would never have

made such a trip with

Little Trailer

Preface

T he events recorded in this book are entirely true. My family did take this trip with Little Trailer exactly as I have written it, with one or two chronological variations. I kept an extensive diary of the trip, adding the last pages while sitting in Little Trailer on our driveway just before it was sold. I have chosen to use different names for the family to preserve their anonymity.

The book’s intended purpose is simply to entertain and inform as well as to strengthen families in faith and prayer and encourage their togetherness. Today’s vast media resources, educational obligations, and extracurricular involvements put a heavy strain on family relations. Our family’s time in Africa gave us opportunity to develop strong family ties, and we were determined to maintain these during furlough in the States.

Shortly after returning to Africa for our third missionary term, this verse of Scripture came strongly to my attention: This is what the Lord, the God of Israel, says: Write in a book all the words I have spoken to you (Jeremiah 30:2 NIV). A deep conviction developed that this is exactly what the Lord intended for me to do. That was seventeen years ago. The process has been long and often delayed, but it has finally come to fruition.

I wish to acknowledge the support of my dear wife, Lavonne, whose patience and wise suggestions throughout the process have been exemplary. Two of my daughters, Sharon Race and Lori Satterwhite, now English teachers with master’s degrees, have contributed their extraordinary editing and proofreading skills, and the third, Cheryl Shaffer, an elementary schoolteacher certified in reading intervention, has field-tested the manuscript with her own children as a family read-aloud experience. All three have offered numerous helpful insights to improve their father’s rudimentary efforts. It was their humor, zest for adventure, and congeniality that made this the unforgettable adventure that it was.

Chapter One

Puppy in the Window

C runch! Crunch! Cruuunch! The stones made a satisfying sound under their boots as David Montgomery and his father walked slowly across the parking lot of the travel trailer dealer. They were searching for just the right RV to take their two families on the trip of a lifetime—to Disneyland in faraway California.

The hot June sun bore down, making them glad for broad-brimmed western hats that shaded their eyes. A brisk West Texas wind blew unusually hot across the plains. Heat waves rose from the dry earth and undulated upward, while far in the distance huge, billowing thunderheads jutted heavenward with the promise of relief from the heat. David and his father hurried in their business.

A few moments earlier they had been sitting in a spacious, mini motor home while visions of campfires danced in their heads. Its ample rear window afforded an excellent view to the passengers, who could sit at a table and sip cool drinks or play games while traveling. A double bed over the cab would provide a comfortable perch for a couple of David’s children during the day while they were driving. They could either nap or have a window to look out the front. At night it would be a bed for Grandmother and Grandfather.

David had driven it down a country road between cotton fields on the outskirts of town, and so had his father. Both agreed it would be the perfect vehicle to take them on this very special vacation. But there was a problem: it was far too expensive for the meager budget saved during the Montgomerys’ last three years of missionary service in Africa. For longer than anyone could remember, the Montgomery family had dreamed and planned and waited for this trip. During the last six months before furlough David Montgomery had spent hours poring over books and maps of the Southwestern United States, calculating mileage from their furlough home in Texas to places like Grand Canyon, Yosemite, Sequoia National Park, and their ultimate destination: Disneyland.

Down they walked, David and his father, past the rows of neatly arranged travel trailers, motor homes, mini motor homes, foldout campers, and slide-in pickup campers. The owner-salesman accompanied them, dressed in jeans and boots and hat. He was relaxed and made his customers feel that way too.

No hurry, folks, he said. Just make yourselves at home. Look all you want and call me when you decide.

Figures were whirring in David’s mind. How much could he afford? How much could he borrow? How big would the monthly payments be? The plan was to use the recreational vehicle for this wonderful vacation, then quickly resell it, hopefully regaining most, if not all, of the investment. But what if it did not sell, at least not for a while? Could they afford to make payments? How long?

David’s parents already had a travel trailer. In fact, they lived in it! Several years ago they had sold their home, bought a thirty-seven foot Mobile Scout trailer, and headed for the Rio Grande Valley of Texas to do mission work among retirees. South Texas was full of Winter Texans or snowbirds as others dubbed them. These were older, retired people who came south to escape the harsh climate and high utility costs in the north. But Grandfather felt that his trailer was just too long and heavy to pull on such a long trip, all the way to California, so the plan had been to find a motor home. Then both families could travel in one vehicle. Grandmother wanted to get reacquainted with her three granddaughters, after years of separation. Eating, sleeping, and traveling together in a few square feet of floor space would guarantee they would be well acquainted before this trip was over!

David’s wife, Katherine Montgomery, joined him, slipping her hand into his, as they walked slowly across the lot while stopping to admire and evaluate each RV. Their three stair-step daughters chattered as they skipped along beside them. Brittany was fourteen and had long, blond hair. She was a head taller than Alicia, who was eleven, and had equally long brown hair. Alicia was a head and a half taller than Megan. Megan was nine. She had long hair that couldn’t decide if it wanted to be brown or blonde.

They had not passed more than four or five RV’s when their attention was inexplicably drawn to one rather small, unimposing, obviously well-used trailer. What happened next David decided later could only be described as a reenactment of the flop-eared-puppy-in-the-window story. He felt a sudden tugging at his heart as though he had met an old friend. Not that it was much to look at. This little trailer was sun faded, hail dented, and had obviously seen a lot of miles and use. But something about it drew David closer as though it had wagged its tail and licked his hand.

Katherine tried the door: it was unlocked. A small slide-out step afforded easy entrance. In a moment David and Katherine were inside. It was like stepping into the warmest of country kitchens, where a visitor feels like one of the family.

The little trailer was spotless and shiny; hardly a scratch could be seen anywhere. The walls and cabinets were real wood with a rich, oak texture. The polished floors showed almost no signs of wear.

Oh, it’s a Shasta, just like the first trailer we had! Grandmother had suddenly appeared, followed by Grandfather.

Look, here’s the refrigerator, said Katherine. Right beside the sink. So handy and roomy.

The double sink looked out over the front of the trailer. A small three-burner cooktop with oven underneath was on the right side, near the door. The chrome handles and top were so shiny they looked new.

A couch that changed into a double bed ran along the side just past the door, and opposite that the dining table with two bench seats also converted into a small double bed that was just right for two children. Across the end, about head high, another bed could be lowered down to rest on two aluminum angle braces above the side windows, or it could be stowed out of the way for traveling, held in place by two barrel bolts.

David was doing some figuring in his mind. Let’s see, Katherine and I could sleep on the couch that makes out into a bed. Brittany and Megan could sleep on the lower bed, and adventuresome Alicia would get along well in the upper bunk. She would delight in the challenge of climbing up into bed every night. And she would be least likely to fall out of bed! Yes, that ought to do fine.

Let’s try out the sleeping arrangements! he suddenly exclaimed.

Everyone pitched in to open up the couch and position the cushions and plywood base just right for sleeping. The colorfully finished tabletop had to be lifted off its pedestal and laid across the bench seats to form the base for the other bed. Cushions from the backrest and seat became mattresses for the bed. When both were made up, ready for sleeping, about six inches separated the two beds. It was a space narrow enough to guarantee some painfully barked shins in the night should anyone desire to get out of bed. But still it would work.

Next to the combination dining table and bed, a door no more than sixteen inches wide opened into a tiny bathroom that had a commode and a doll-size sink. A drain in the floor allowed the whole bathroom to become a shower with a flexible shower hose attached to the sink. Grandfather had already noted that there was a freshwater tank under the couch and a holding tank under the trailer so that the trailer would be completely self-contained.

The previous owner had installed a 110-volt air conditioner in one of the rear windows. That would come in handy during the heat of the summer, especially when crossing the desert on their way to California.

Grandfather was busy going over every detail of the exterior of the trailer. He had worked in the travel trailer business for years before retirement. As service manager for a dealership, he had experience with just about everything concerning the use and maintenance of travel trailers.

There’s no spare tire, he was quick to point out, but the tires are the same size as the ones your car uses, so your car spare could be used in an emergency.

He continued musing. Only one axle, too. Might make it bouncy. Just have to try her out and see.

David continued on around the trailer following Grandfather as he pointed out the hot water heater and where it could be lit from the outside, and the refrigerator controls that would allow it to operate on electricity or bottled gas while traveling. A flexible drain hose was stored inside the square bumper at the rear of the trailer. Together, David and his father raised the awning that covered the front window. When closed, it provided protection for the window while traveling, but when opened it allowed a nice view out the front of the trailer.

Their exterior examination done, the two men entered the trailer again where the two women and the three girls were still looking in every drawer and tiny nook with exclamations of delight.

What do you think? David asked his family.

Let’s get it, Daddy, implored Alicia, jumping up and down till she shook the whole trailer.

It sure is neat and inviting on the inside, commented Katherine. I like it.

Just about that time the owner walked up.

Well, folks, what do you think? he asked.

We like it fine, answered David, but we’ll have to see if we can afford it.

It’s a bargain, for sure. I can let you have it for… He took off his cap and scratched his head for a moment in deep thought. Let’s say $3000.

Well, it’s more in line with what we can afford than the motor home, said David. We’ll think about it for a while and let you know in a couple of days.

On the way back to their car David spoke to his father. Dad, if we bought this trailer it would mean that you and Mother would have to drive your pickup and pull your trailer too. What would you think about that?

David knew that his father, now more than seventy years old, wasn’t eager to pull his thirty-seven foot trailer over that long distance.