The Saga of the Stolen Hyundai

Southern Man and eleven-year-old daughter parked The Hyundai late last Friday night and went to bed; the next morning it was gone - along with checkbooks, book bags, prescription sunglasses, and most of daughter's weekend luggage.

The chronology, to this point is:

Saturday Morning: car missing
Monday Morning: dealt with banks (closing / reopening checking accounts) and insurance
Wednesday Morning: first forged checks appear
Wednesday Evening: car recovered in a town about fifty miles away; damaged and stripped

Southern Man can't go look at the car yet as the police still have a "hold" on it until they finish their investigation. This post will be updated as events unfold.

Southern Man is trying to work through the Five Stages of Grief but is pretty much stuck at "anger" for the time being. He is reminded of the wisdom of the Old Testament and "an eye for an eye," which was a law meant to restrict punishments. If Southern Man had his way he'd chain a cinderblock to the thief's ankles and toss him in the lake, which is perhaps a bit harsh for property crime. But these thoughts do make Southern Man realize he is finally beginning to understand what Paul was saying in 2 Corinthians 10:5. Lord, grant me the wisdom to accept this loss and rather than seek vengance, forgive as I have been forgiven. Amen.

[updated 1 Dec:] The Hyundai is finally at a local collision shop. The thieves took everything that was in the car - every scrap of paper, every pen and pencil in the glovebox, even the trash in the back seat. The factory XM radio is gone and they cut the catalytic converter out as well. Then they apparently went muddin' in it, so it's filthy inside and out and theres a lot of minor body damage - but it runs. A little wrangling with the insurance company and it should be back in service next week. Most disturbing is that the ignition is fine, indicating that the thieves must have had a key, so Southern Man will have a hidden kill switch installed as well.