Bad Day

Yesterday was a bad day for my wife. She had a full plate of activities and she began her day running errands, getting ready to prepare a meal for a member of our church who is recovering from GI (Gastro-Intestinal) surgery. A vicious storm had blown in, with strong winds that sent debris everywhere. Trash cans, litter, toys, even several trampolines had blown out of yards (and in one case, on a neighbors roof). Trees were down in some areas and we even had a lightning strike at our church, hitting a tree in the preschool playground. Things were a mess.

As my wife turned into the alley that runs behind our house, she noticed that the alley was littered with garbage cans and recycle bins (among other things) that kept her from driving on. She thought about just parking in the street out in front of our house, but the thought of hail damaging our second vehicle made her cringe (the van is only 2 years old, my truck was hit HARD last year with hail. It is 6 years old), so she got out of her van and moved as much debris as she could to get the van through. She sat the cans upright (what little good that would do with all the wind) and pushed the bins out of the way. She did this the entire 300 feet or so of the alley until she was able to get into our garage.

As she was pulling in she noticed a beagle running loose in the storm. It was soaked and scared and ran right towards her (My wife is a true animal lover. I think she will be Saint Assisi's helper when she gets to heaven), practically begging for her help. She left brought the dog into the garage, and check the caller. She called the owner's number, but they were not home. There was no address. The dog had registration tags (thankfully) so she called the county and was told to take it to the local approved vet so the owner could be contacted. So she put the beagle in our dog's carrier and loaded it up into her van and set out to help the animal. When she got home, she noticed the power was out and she had just a few hours before she was to deliver dinner to our recuperating friend. Without electricity and pouring the rain down, dinner was on hold.

When I got home from work and then the eye doctor (to pick up my new specs) she was frazzled. She told me the story and I held her, telling her it was going to be OK. She then told me that our son had not returned something to school and she had to run over to the school during the height of all this madness to take it back. She was also upset because our son told us (he did not ask) that he was going to the National Guard Armory to get some things done (He has enlisted in the Texas Army National Guard and has been studying online to go up in rank before he attends basic training Monday). There were clothes in the dryer, a huge pile of dishes that needed washed, the dogs needed fed and my wife still needed to get a ready so we could go to our church Care Group meeting in about 75 minutes. What a day.

She started crying, saying she did not want to go to Care Group. I asked why and she told me. Her day was a shambles and did not fell like going. I asked her to go. She said no. I asked her again, she said no. Then I said, "You are going, and that is final. You 'bad day' is over and we need to get spiritually right with God. The devil is tempting you with a quiet evening, but what you do nor realize is that we will really have a great time if we both go. I want you to go with me."

She went, we had a good meal, great fellowship, and a great time. Any do you know what else? She may have had a rotten day, but you could never tell it. She enjoyed herself.