Chapter 3 of "Finding Heart Ridge" : John's Place

We weren't getting any kind of indication that we would get financial help from anyone--and we weren't quite ready to beg. . .yet.  We had always talked about moving out of the Greenville, SC area to the country or a smaller town.  Keith would still plan on commuting to his full-time job, so it couldn't be too far away.  We were thinking, that if we could find a less expensive place, perhaps we could sell our house and live at the retreat place.  We know many people who commute an hour to their jobs.  Maybe this would be a solution.  Brevard was just too far away, and too expensive, is there some place else?

 We expanded our search.  There were a few places in Tryon, NC that caught our attention.  The first one we'll call John's Place.  This brick mansion from the 20's had so much charm and character.  It was owned by an elderly man, John, who was ready to sell and downsize.  It had been on the market for a couple of years.  
The price for this 15 acres home site plus so much more was incredible.  We felt it was a gift--meant to be.  
Not only did it have the 4000 sqft house. but it had 2 guest houses, a maid quarters, a barn, and a liveable treehouse.  It was situated in the foothills--with just the right amount of slope and views.   

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It probably would have come with the furniture--many beautiful and unique antique pieces.

And a swimming pool, pond, clay tennis court, complete with a skeet-shooting machine.  We loved the charm and the location.

We returned a couple more times.  The last time we visited was with our busy, builder friend.  "Were we making a mistake?"  "Was the maid's quarters going to slide down the hill?"  "Was the main  house in good structural condition?"  and the like. . . 

This was a lot of acres, too.  We wondered if we hiked up the back of the property which was situated in the middle of a valley and partly on the mountain, if we'd have "views."  It was then that we noticed how close the property line was to highway 26.   Not really a problem because of the distance to the houses, but a problem because you could hear the trucks and cars, even back at the house. 

What we didn't notice before, now it was all we could hear!  When you were sitting on on the porches or at the pool, you could hear traffic.   

We talked about playing music throughout the property, but that's still not quite the same as silence--the sound you want available at a retreat center.

It was a deal breaker.  Our love affair with John's place was over.