By Camile Anding

The crime rate in Jackson appears to be spilling over into its surrounding municipalities. Thievery is a chosen profession for a growing segment in choices of crime.

With those glaring facts, Othel surveyed our home and felt we needed tighter security than wooden doors and tiny window latches.  A security store advertising metal doors and impregnable windows seemed to have the solution to our vulnerable condition.
We visited their shop and agreed that their solutions could be our solutions. A name on the dotted line and a check put us on their work list for the following week.

The installation process involved several workers with a trailer-load of equipment and noise-makers. A foreman explained again the safety of the doors and windows and the importance of keeping the door keys near the doors.

“Once you lock these from the inside, no one can get in AND you can’t get out without this key. If a fire should break out, you better know where to find this key!”

That brought more than a little concern to my thought processes, because Othel and I find that we spend a respectable amount of time looking for things. I lose my phone or he misplaces his. The car keys possess retractable legs that they use at night to run and hide from us. His wallet is not the stay-home kind, and my purse likes to visit all over the house.

I try to keep my watch and rings in the same place each night, but “try” is not in concrete! My drop-off spots vary. If Othel looks for his watch today, he helps me look for mine tomorrow.

With that concerned background, Othel and I resolved and made covenant vows that we would always keep the door keys in the SAME spot, close to the door. So far, we have not searched a single time for door keys.

It’s because those keys have earned their importance and they also make a perfect reminder of the key to eternal life. Jesus said, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6).

I’ve heard people say, “That’s too exclusive; all religions eventually lead to heaven.” Sorry for them, but that’s false. If I ever wake to smoke in our home, I will reach for the door key; the car keys won’t work!