Rain swept over the car in sheets as the three family members huddled inside trying to stay warm.

The old car was parked well off of the road where the father had coasted it when it had died. Now, the quiet of the lonely road was displaced by the heavy drops of rain that washed the countryside.

The family was stuck, homeless and cold, inside a car that was no longer working, miles from any town.

The car had quit just after midnight, and after pulling to the side of the road there had only been three other vehicles pass by, none of which stopped to check on the car or its occupants. Inside, now gathered together in the back seat under blankets and clothes were the three family members - Jimmy, a rather boyish looking man of 27, Lisbeth, unable to sleep because of the dilemma her family faced, and Mae, a tiny girl of five fast asleep in the back and oblivious to the concerns of her parents.

Their destination was still many hours away if the car was still running. But for this night, their car would be a temporary home.

The trip had started with cheery goodbyes and best wishes as they drove away from Uncle Shane's house. Shane was the older brother of Mae's father, Jimmy. He and his wife, Lila, and their two kids Josh and Nicole, had been their hosts for the last two weeks while Jimmy, Lisbeth and Mae gathered their senses and prayed for an answer to their condition. Jimmy's job had ended two months before. Lisbeth was only working part-time when Jimmy lost his job and the money just wasn't enough to keep up with their bills. So, they had sold off what little they had, moved out of their apartment, and gone to live with Shane and his family while they figured out their next move. Shane and Lila had graciously opened their small home to the family and for two weeks it was fun and warm with times of laughter and dreaming about what was next.

"What was next" came shortly after Jimmy talked to a friend in Dallas, Texas who said there were some jobs there and plenty of low rent weekly motels where they could stay until they had a few paychecks and were able to afford to get an apartment. Two days later the family was bundled in the car and set out to drive straight through from Southern California to Texas.

The first day on the road they passed many of their favorite places in California, with the mood in the car quickly turning from optimistic to nostalgic. Lisbeth pointed out Legoland and Seaworld and Mae excitedly responded with her little face pressed up hard against the window as her mom reminded her about the fun they had visiting both happy places.

The day wore on and the drive soon took on the monotonous tone of a road trip. Mile after mile of hills, mountains, valleys, and cars on the ribbon of freeway, was broken only by stops to get gas and food and the occasional walk to shake out tired and cramped muscles.

As night fell, the old Hyundai took them through Arizona into New Mexico with its passengers happy that they were making good time and dreaming about what Texas would hold for them. The weather had been dicey during the afternoon with squalls in the distance and the occasional rain cell soaking the freeway as it moved through the afternoon sky.

Night was a different matter. There were no sights to see. Long open stretches of road gave a little relief from the glare of lights and signs of the little towns they passed.

Lisbeth taught Mae the "first star" game that she had played when she was a little girl. When Mae sighted the first star in the sky, Lisbeth explained that you would wish on a star and if it was the first star your wish just might come true. "Star light, star bright, first star I see tonight I wish I may I wish I might have the wish I wish tonight," said mom and daughter over and over again until Mae could say it effortlessly. Lisbeth knew what Mae wished for because her young daughter had said several times during the day, "I wish we had a new home, mommy."

Sometime around midnight they pulled into Hope, NM. Husband and wife were both heartened to see the signs for Hope as they approached the village. Just the word "hope" brought some emotional comfort and peace. Jimmy pulled into the one gas station with lights on and a warm mini-mart just as the small business was preparing to close for the night. Mae had been asleep for hours. Lisbeth ran inside for coffee while Jimmy filled the tank.

As they both got back in the car they began to talk in quietly excited tones about hope. They were young, healthy, with a bright young daughter, and the future was ahead of them. The next half hour passed quickly as Jimmy and Lisbeth imagined what they would do when they got to Dallas. First, they would see Jimmy's buddy, Skip. Skip and Jimmy had served in the Marine Corps together and became fast friends when they were both sent to Afghanistan. The year overseas had been hard on Lisbeth and Mae, but Jimmy came home in springtime, finished his service in the Corps and the family settled in Orange, California, a charming, Old California city that pre-dates the global tourist phenomenon that is now Southern California.

After visiting Skip and his young family they would find a temporary place to stay and Jimmy would look for work.

As the days had rolled quickly toward their departure from Orange the news from Skip became a bit more subdued. He was still optimistic about job prospects and the potential in Dallas, but he didn't sound as enthusiastic as he had been. This shift did not go unnoticed by either Jimmy or Lisbeth. They decided that they would quickly survey the scene once they got to Dallas. They would both try to secure work but they had no illusions that the process would be either quick or easy.

Tank filled, coffee cup in hand, Jimmy turned the car back onto the open highway, now called the "Hope Highway" and with renewed optimism they were once again heading toward their destination. For a half hour.

The first sign of trouble was an occasional stutter in the mechanical hum of the engine. Within five minutes the stutter became a constant miss. Another 200 yards and the engine just quit. Jimmy pulled well off the road and tried everything he could think of, including looking under the hood with a flashlight in one hand, puzzling over the maze of metal and plastic occupying every square inch of space in the engine compartment.

The night passed slowly with the heat of the day having been replaced by much colder temperatures. Under blankets and clothes Jimmy and Lisbeth were able to stay warm, but just barely.

Finally, the eastern sky began to lighten and a few cars sped by, almost as many as had passed them during the entire night.

Jimmy jumped out of the car and walked over to the shoulder of the road, watching for traffic. Within 20 minutes he was able to flag down a large long-haul semi-truck with big letters on the side of the trailer spelling out, Star Trucking. A quick conversation later and the family was secure in the cab of the truck which was now rolling down the highway once more. The driver's name was Keenan and he was driving a load from Phoenix to St. Louis. He had decided to take the more southern route because of weather and the relatively absence of traffic, a propitious move as it now benefited Jimmy's family.

The cab was warm and Keenan was friendly and an ex-Marine, which prompted stories back and forth between the two men. Within a short time the family settled into the unplanned next leg of their trip. Keenan had an old school buddy in Hobbs, right on the New Mexico side of the border with Texas, and he called ahead to explain the situation. One of Keenan's old Marine friends, Stan, owned a motel and an auto repair shop next door from which he operated a small towing business. With Keenan's insistence Stan had promised to provide a room for the young family and even better, to tow their car into Hobbs and see what kind of repairs could be made. Listening to the phone conversation between the two men, Lisbeth became more hopeful.

Finally, the tractor-trailer rig rolled into the parking lot of the Star Motel, a rustic looking, one-story building in an H-shape with rail hitching posts in front of each room. As they pulled to a stop the dust of the dirt parking lot swirled past the truck announcing their arrival.

Stan walked out of the office to greet them and quickly charmed Mae by winking and whistling a nursery rhyme song. The charm flowed both ways because little girls have certain ways that can warm the most hardened hearts. From that moment on, Stan and Mae were friends.

With the family safely in their motel room, Keenan said his goodbyes and headed back out on the road for St. Louis. Stan and Jimmy climbed into the tow truck to go fetch the family car. During the drive, both men discovered they had much in common. Ex-Marines, both married young and with a single child. Stan's 5½ year old daughter Kaylee, was in Kindergarten like Mae. His wife Kari was an avid Pinterest follower.

Stan had inherited the businesses from his parents when they had both died in a terrible car accident on the Hope highway four years ago. He shared with Jimmy that his goal was to keep the business going but it was a struggle.

Once back at the motel with their car in the garage bay, over the next three days Jimmy helped fix up the motel, including the Star Motel sign that had burned out years ago but now burned brightly every night. Jimmy also helped out in the garage since he had picked up some mechanical skills in the service.

The two men worked on the family car and quickly determined that the source of the problem was bad gas from their fill up in Hope. That was good news because they could flush all the lines, clean out the tank and have it back on the road in a day or two.

Lisbeth helped Kari with the books for both businesses and the two women spent hours talking and running the motel office. Kaylee and Mae become best friends.

As with many things, the repairs took longer than expected. After two weeks, the family was ready to resume their trip. Jimmy called Skip who once again reported that things were somewhat slow in the Dallas economy and that he wasn't too sure about quick employment.

Stan and Jimmy had several talks, with Stan suggesting that the family stay at the motel and that Jimmy join him in the two businesses. In the short time they had been at the Star, Jimmy had repaired all the "hitching post" rails, replaced the split rail fence at the front of the property, fixed the sign, repaired two air conditioner/heater units, and that was just what he did at the motel. In the auto repair shop he and Stan worked together on every vehicle that came in, discovering the source of problems quickly and repairing them just as quickly.

At night the two men talked about how to promote the businesses with signage along the highway, and with specials for both the motel and the garage. The motel now boasted a $49 first night special, which filled the little motel for the first time during the first week they tried it.

Jimmy and Stan alternated being on call at night for towing calls. Lisbeth and Kari started a free continental breakfast for motel guests that they set out in the office area every morning at 6am. Kaylee showed Mae around the area, including the wash just beyond the motel property, at the base of the hills. Inside the wash were all kinds of treasures - old bones, arrowheads, strange and unusual stones, and the occasional carcass of a dead critter.

Stan and Kari sat down one day with Jimmy and Lisbeth and spelled out a deal. They had been so grateful for all that Jimmy and Lisbeth had done. Business was better and a lot of it was because the two couples worked so well together and each adult brought different and complementary skills. If Jimmy and Lisbeth would stay, they could become partners in the businesses.

Neither business was making much money, and it would certainly be difficult at first to support salaries for two families, but they were making enough money that Jimmy and Lisbeth could get a small, living stipend and they could live rent-free in what had been the owner's home when Stan's dad owned the motel. It had two bedrooms, a kitchen, a nice bathroom and a living room and was a perfect size for the young family. Jimmy and Lisbeth would also get one-24th of ownership each month, which would equal a 50% share after one year. After that the two families would split whatever money was available for salaries and the rest of the profits that they hoped for would go into continuing to grow the businesses.

It was a fair deal. Jimmy and Lisbeth had not had an opportunity like this before and after several days of thinking and talking about it they decided, "Why not?" A few days later an attorney in Hope prepared the papers and they were quickly signed by all four adults in front of a notary public.

Two days later it was Christmas Eve. Lisbeth and Kari had decorated the motel and repair shop with lights and wreaths, the tow truck had been festooned with lights on its tow boom in the shape of a Christmas tree, and the pine tree along the split rail fence out by the highway was all decorated with lights and a brightly lit star on top.

Late that afternoon, as a light snow fell around them the two families sat out in front of the motel, bundled up and leaning back in the weathered, wooden Adirondack chairs that sat in front of every room.

At dusk the motel sign blinked to life, the pine tree lit up, and the conversation turned to stars.

"My dad always told me that when it was time to come home all I had to do was look for the star sign over the motel to find the way," Stan said.

"Sometimes he would just say, 'Just follow the star, son,' and I think that's pretty good instruction for life, too. Just follow the star."

Mae had been silent during the conversation but at this she turned to Stan and exclaimed, "But, we saw stars everywhere. When we were stuck on the highway that night we saw stars in the sky, a trucker from Star Trucking stopped and brought us here, and now we have the star sign to look at every night. So, how do you know which star to follow?"

"I asked my daddy that too, Mae. You know what he said?"

"No, what?"

"He said, 'It's easy. Just follow the star that brings you back home.'"