NATCHEZ — Ed and Edee Temple looked like they were just enjoying a pleasant Saturday afternoon when The Dart landed on Woodhaven Drive in Natchez.

But in fact, the Temples were waiting on a very special delivery — their son, William Temple.

William was traveling to Natchez to enjoy his spring break holiday from Birmingham Southern College in Birmingham, Ala., where he is a sophomore religion major. And his parents were busy getting ready for his arrival.

“We’re just out here wiping down his car so it will be ready for him when he gets home,” Ed Temple said.

Ed said the Pontiac Firebird that was sitting in the driveway is William’s car, but it isn’t the one he drives back and forth to college.

Instead, Ed drives the car to and from work, he is the pastor at Jefferson Street United Methodist Church in Natchez, and William enjoys it when he is home on school breaks.

Edee said there was a good reason for Ed driving the car and not William.

“I wanted him to have something safe to go to college in,” she said. “That car is 11 years old and I was afraid it might break down on him during the six-hour drive.”

But instead of trading the Firebird in, the Temple family decided to hang on to it. But that meant one car had to go.

“We are a family of three, and to have more than three cars is just sinful to me,” Edee said.

So instead of trading in the Firebird, Ed gave up his Buick. But that decision didn’t take a lot of arm-twisting.

“Ed didn’t want to give it up,” Edee said.

But Ed said he had good reasons for holding on to his son’s car — he didn’t want him relive one of his own mistakes.

“I had a 1970 Camaro SS when I was in high school that I traded off,” Ed said. “If I had hung on to that car, not only would it have been a valuable investment, it would have been a great sentimental investment.

“For that reason, I’ll keep his first car for him for as long as I can.”

Getting his car ready isn’t the only preparation the Temples have done for William’s arrival. Edee said she has stocked her kitchen with all of William’s favorite foods.

“He called and said ‘I’m so tired of fast food,’” Edee said. “So I went to the grocery store and got all of his favorites. We’re going to have roasts and pork tenderloins and macaroni and cheese — just everything that he likes.”

And even though William is six hours away and not able to come home as often as his parents would like, he is always on the minds of his parents.

And he is especially close to his mother. Edee has been wearing a heart shaped pin containing a picture of William since he was just a toddler.

“I saw these pins in a mother’s day advertisement and thought wouldn’t it be great if I could have William with me all the time,” Edee said.

So she purchased 10 of the pins — for $1 each — and has updated the picture periodically and replaced the pins when they have broken, but, she said, a pin is always somewhere on the clothes she is wearing.

“William thinks he is a little too old for it now, but for probably 19 years, he has always been with me,” Edee said.