Sunday, June 24, 2012

Being Brave

I've moved back home.
It's so clean and uncluttered and show-home-ish. And empty.

BUT, I will live here until it's no longer mine.
I will not live in fear. That break-in/robbery is not going to be my undoing.


That said, I'm still kinda jumpy. And little noises freak me out. And I'm praying continually. But lookit me being brave in a non-big-red-hair way.

Maybe I should get a bow n arrow.
I'm not too old to take up archery.
Or bareback horseback riding.

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By the way, I saw Brave tonight.



I loved the animation.


Story was weak.

I'd give it a 7 out of 10.

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I went to sleep on Thursday night (my first night by myself back in Murrayville) with many things on my mind. One of those things was the storage pod on my driveway. Clint had jam-packed it at the far end, assuming we were going to fill the whole thing. In the end, we only had enough crap to fill it half way. I was worried that, because it wasn't totally full, the wall of boxes, etc, would fall over when they lifted the pod onto the truck. So I told myself I was going to get up early and tie everything to the framing posts on the inside. Yes. That is what I was going to do.

But first I'd have to buy some rope.
So I'd have to get up extra early and go to a hardware store.
But it was going to be a hair day, so before I could go out, I'd have to wash my hair. (Wash, Dry, Curl. This process takes almost an hour. I HATE HAIR DAYS.)
So I'd have to get up extra, extra early.

At 8:00 am, while I was still very asleep, a truck beeping as it backed up my driveway, woke me up.
They were 3 hours early.
Without washing my face, brushing my teeth, putting on make up, or getting properly dressed, I met the pod-hauler guy at my front door while picking sleep out of my eyes.



He had tried to lift the pod onto his truck, but "how did you pack it?" he asked. "The weight doesn't seem to be evenly distributed"... it slid right off his hydraulics. "Can I see what you've done in there?"
So I opened up the sliding door and he laughed.
"This has to be redone. That wall of boxes, needs to be redistributed; maybe placed right across the floor. And this? Needs to be moved. And these, need to be stacked over here. And that? Can't stay there."

I told him I'd repack it, and then call his dispatcher to see if he could come back later in the day.
"I have two more Langley pick ups, then I'm heading to Richmond at noon. So, do you think you can have this done by then?"
"I'll try." And then I get in the pod and shuffle a few things around. I'm calculating in my mind how long this will take. I told my mom I'd be at the Lodge by 12:45 to help her get dad to his pacemaker-test appointment. Plus I still have to do my hair. And the pod needs repacking. And I'm supposed to take photos of the front and back yards for the MLS listing. And I need to pack for another overnighter at my mom's. And all of a sudden the morning is no where near long enough. I'm feeling panicked.

"Hey, why don't I just stay and give you a hand?" He slides past me to the far end of the pod. "Doesn't make much sense leaving you here to do this by yourself." And with that, I share a 8' x '8' x 16' space with a man. A stranger. I am fresh out of bed and feeling it. Bed head, naked face, fuzzy teeth, randomly dressed. Not my best look. Ask anyone. 

We were done in 15 minutes. He was a good worker.


I sent an email to his boss, commending him for going above and beyond.

It was the best start to my Friday morning. I pulled up to the Lodge just as dad was being loaded into the taxi. PERFECT TIMING.


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Three things I'm thankful for:

1. Late night laughs. Steve Carrel on Craig Ferguson, SO FUNNY.

2. Sharing late night laughs with Tricia in Florida who is watching alongside me.

3. All the good people in the world. There are so many.

4. I'm thankful for church tonight. Another message that was from God to me. "If you're wondering why God is allowing things to happen (to you), it's because He is working His plan so that He might be glorified."  And then we sang It Is Well With My Soul and Amazing Grace. (It was suggested to me the other night, to not spend time analyzing/spiritualizing my circumstances... that the things that have been happening (job loss, home sale, dad's stroke, robbery, etc) are just things that have been happening. God isn't always 'doing something' when He allows certain events to transpire. Just because I am impacted by these events, doesn't mean they're all about me.) I dunno. This feels personal. I think God is at work. On me.

5. The caregivers at the Kinsmen Lodge. My dad is becoming a handful. He wants that damn seatbelt OFF. NOW. He's taken to pushing himself around in his wheelchair going from room to room asking other patients/residents if they have scissors. He wants to cut off this seat belt. He has a one track mind and he is not giving up.
He has figured out that the quickest way to get that belt off is to say he has to go to the bathroom. He had them lift him off his chair half a dozen times in one hour. It's exhausting. For everyone. I'm thankful that regardless of how they feel, they continue to care for him.


Shalom,

Prayer Requests:

1. For the guys that broke into my house. That God would orchestrate events so that they would be caught and given the chance to go into rehab. That God would meet them where they are, overwhelm them with His great, personal love, and they would be able to respond.
2. That dad would continue to settle into his new environment. That mom's life would have meaning beyond visiting dad. That God would be glorified in this situation.
3. That I would be brave. That my next steps would be crystal clear.
4. That tomorrow's showings would be successful. That my house would sell quickly.
5. For those who are suffering with drug addictions. Please pray that they would find their way to an NA meeting and a rehab facility that would help them surrender to a Higher Power.
6. For Jessica:

An update from Jessica herself:
I went for my checkup with my surgeon on Wednesday. I had a chest x-ray and it showed that I had a small pneumothorax (a portion of my lung collapsed). Dr. Bond sent me for another x-ray the next day to see if it was bigger. I got a call from the doctor today and it was the same, which is great! Hopefully it will resolve on its own and the pocket of air will be absorbed back into my body. My hole in my neck is still not fully closed. There is a bit of concern of my scar attaching itself to my tracheal tube. We are praying that it heals on its own within the next two weeks so that I don't have to go in for minor surgery. I am eating and walking more and more each day. It is a slow recovery but, I feel stronger every day. 

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