All I can say is that this turned into the great imploding weekend. I felt like how these little dirt babies at left, look. However, I’m hopeful for a quick recovery. It started Friday when my neighbor lady pulled her medical alert string and they called me to check on her. She’s 88 years old and her family is all out of town, so they put me on the list. They had asked me to check on her periodically anyway, but I hadn’t been over in a while. All through the Christmas and New Year she had family visiting so I figured she was alright. However, for several days I had been telling myself that I needed to get over there (part of my resolution to being a better friend and all). Arghhh, what failure! Anyway, I was able to help her get her things together to go to the hospital and call her family. I went up and sat with her for a while apologizing for not checking on her better. She’s so sweet and of course didn’t have any problems with me, but I still feel horrible. She’s since had a stroke and they’re not sure what’s going to happen, but it looks like she won’t be coming home to her house again. I think the biggest regret I have is that I could never get out of her a real admission of salvation. I tried broaching the subject several times and had given her books and tracts too, but she was never much for heartfelt talking. I hope I didn’t wimp out on this one. It leaves me questioning if I really cared enough, or tried hard enough. I hate that I can write well or teach a prepared lesson well, but face to face I’m so awkward with people. Lord, help me not to be awkward about the most important issue!
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After a basketball game and lunch on Saturday, the girls had a friend over for the afternoon and I spent it joyfully having to be nowhere. I cooked for the upcoming week and did some much needed cleaning around the house. I was feeling so great about this. It was one of those afternoons that feel so productive…then 2nd man came home. It wasn’t his arrival that was bad, but the news he brought with him. “Wonder what’s going on at the church tonight? I heard a lot of people in the Family Life Center.” Screeeeech! Halt! Quick camera close up! We were supposed to be at that party ahhhhhhhhhhhhh! A young woman in our church was having a going away party for her new husband before he leaves for Afghanastan. You know, no big deal or anything, just a young married couple having to part from each other as he leaves to go fight for our country and put his life on the line….that’s all. Can you say Boooo to me? I had completely forgotten to remember this party…ugh.
After praying about my failure to be a good friend in this area, I left it with the Lord. Upon waking Sunday morning, I was eager to start preparing a very “clean” and nutritious lunch. This involved a lot of dicing of onion and garlic. I did get this accomplished, but not without destroying every speck of clean kitchen I had fixed up the day before. I just can’t stand walking into a dirty house after Sunday morning services. I’d much rather walk in and be able to relax, but yeah, wouldn’t we all? Ha ha. I had to ask 2nd man on the way to church if I smelled like a big onion. The smell had permeated my nasal cavity and my eyes wouldn’t stop watering. I think everyone at church thought I was very “moved in the Spirit” that morning.
Church was a funny story in and of itself. 2nd man had a wonderful Sunday School class on prayer. God even showed himself true in answering prayer by bringing the kids to church that day. However, we perhaps failed to pray for the children’s church hour. That, or it was just a set up day for a perfect storm. 2nd man didn’t know until after Sunday School that the woman who reads the missionary story was home with a sick child, so he had to scramble to get prepared for some extra game time. The rest of the hour went…well…just as chaotic. There were no birthday kids to sing to, nobody brought a visitor, so he couldn’t even go through his schpiel of welcoming visiting kids and rewarding them and the person who invited them with a giant candy bar. The lesson time seemed to go by extra fast so we were left with like an hour of game time! This just got wild. Bus kids were, literally, climbing posts in the gym and hiding behind every trashcan. Little girls were getting pushed and hurt every time we turned around. I was constantly going back and forth to the kitchen for ice packs. All of us workers had the twitching eye of trauma when it was all over.
I figured the mayhem was over when we got home. We ate lunch, cleaned house, and then, with a sigh of relief and satisfaction I decided to lie down and relax before doing my homeschool work for the week. I had been lying down for just a little while when my daughter brought it to my attention that I had completely forgotten to take her to her basketball practice.
Well, line up behind all of the other people I’ve let down this weekend.
Come Monday, I was glad the weekend was over. I had high hopes of a fresh start and staying on schedule. In the midst of getting 2nd man ready for work, my son threw up all over the kitchen, himself and me! Oh, boy looks like another boring week in this homeschooling, ministry household….
2ndmanswife 