So a few weekends ago, my small group went on a retreat. My friend Jeanie, also the leader of the small group, asked if I would be willing to lead praise for it and so I happily obliged.
I brought my guitar, along with my bag and toiletries, to the center and we had a wonderful weekend spending time in God's word, worshiping, fellowshipping, and praising.
It came time to go home and we realized that we didn't have enough room in the car for everyone to fit so we had to move my guitar to my friend Jeanie's car and she said that she would return it to my friend Rob on Sunday at church. So, without hesitating, I agreed and placed the guitar safely in her car.
Fast forward a week and a half. I asked my friend Rob if he had received the guitar from Jeanie and he said not yet, but have had conversations with Jeanie to set up a time to get it from her. I wasn't in a hurry to get the guitar because it was Finals time and I was occupied with studying for exams. Also, Jeanie too had finals, so I could understand how it might have slipped her mind.
Not thinking too much of it, and also after school was over, as I had mentioned in my previous update that I went home to Philly, I figured that I would get it when I got back to Chicago.
Its been about a month since we came back from the retreat and so I called Jeanie to say hello and also ask if I could get my guitar back before she left Chicago for a three week trip.
Her response was shocking "Guitar, what are you talking about? I gave it to Rob the very Sunday after the retreat?"
I'm like SAY WHAT????
I asked Rob if he had gotten my guitar from Jeanie that Sunday and he said he never got it either!
I'm sitting here thinking what in the world??!?!? One person is saying one thing, and the other is saying another...who do I believe?!???
So obviously I need to get to the bottom of this issue....so I ask Rob again, but I believe that he didn't get it because I had asked him before, AND I see him all the time that if he had gotten it, he would have returned it by now...
So then it goes back to Jeanie and...
I'm like: "Hey, Rob says that he never got the guitar from you"
Jeanie says: "But I distinctly remember giving your guitar to someone who was going into the city the very Sunday after the retreat"
I'm Like: "Who else could you have given my guitar to, and why would you give it to someone else??"
Jeanie says: "Let me email out the small group members to see if I might have given it to someone else. I thought you already had it"
Can you imagine what I'm thinking at this point????
So the email goes out, and not surprisingly, no one else has any recollection of ever recieving the guitar from her...
What do I do??? Not only is the guitar pretty expensive, it holds great sentimental value because it was a birthday gift from my brothers. Who do I hold responsible...
Anyways, long story short, it turned out that Jeanie had given it to one of the other small group members who, on every Sunday rents what they call a
ZIP CAR, which is ideal for those that live in the city to use a car but not pay for the expenses of owning a car. She asked him to return the guitar to me and so he took the guitar and placed it in the trunk, forgot that he had it, then returned it!!!!
Luckily when we finally pieced together this whole mystery, we called the regional office and they were just waiting on someone to call to claim it!!!!
CAN YOU BELIEVE THIS??? Btw, whoever was responsible for the guitar after it had been passed to them, still hasn't manned up to the responsibility but whatever at this point, atleast I got my guitar back...
Moral of the story: Take care of your own things!
2nd Moral: Always take a second look through before returning the Car
Chicagoans are great people and that they didn't steal my guitar.
I should write a song about this.... :-)
till next time....
