It began because I thought I needed drawers as part of my work space. Perhaps I should explain. We bought one or more pieces of furniture for all but one room in our condo when we purchased it—to finish the the decor. By the time we got to finishing the guest bedroom where my desk would be located—I like seclusion at times—funds were low and we made-do.
My old desk was huge, too big and not especially conducive to computers. Being the enterprising person I am, I designed a desk with glider for my keyboard but no drawers. Ken, being the enterprising person he is, made it for me. Placed next to my small file cabinet, it worked well—until I began writing again. Now I’m ready for something different, perhaps even a new desk.
On Wednesday we made a tour of eight second-hand stores as a starter, to see what we could find. They weren’t close to each other, either. That night I decided that a small nightstand we’d seen in the sixth store would provide the needed storage for now.
But on Thursday we shopped two additional second-hand stores to make sure we hadn’t missed anything. No desks, but in the second store I saw a pink chair. Now, I’ve been trying to get away from pink, but the chair fit, was comfortable, and would be perfect as a reading chair, a chair other than my desk chair and one located far from the TV. I had to think about it, so we returned to the sixth store and purchased the night stand. When we got home we not only moved the nightstand into the condo, we rearranged the bedroom to see if the chair would fit.
On Friday we made a trip to purchase the pink chair. Keep in mind that streets and sidewalks were icy, temps were low, and the wind was blowing in gusts. Furthermore, my hands are weak so I’m no help when carrying something heavy. On Thursday the store employees helped load the nightstand. On Friday we were on our own.
My part was holding the door open. We thought the back of our older Escort wagon would be large enough, so we drove it, but the arms of the chair were wider than we thought. After struggling to get it outside, Ken worked another 15 minutes using this method or that method, trying to fit it into the back of the car. His face looked absolutely raw, but I left him out there alone. When he finally came in, announcing his success, it was hard to be jubilant. So we drove home, removed it from the car—much easier now that he had a method—and began rearranging furniture in earnest.
Ken was up first Saturday morning. I could barely roll over. After his breakfast he came back into the bedroom, looked out the window, and said, We had quite a day yesterday, didn’t we? Pause. I’m kinda stiff today. Pause. Then, with a hint of a grin he turned toward me, But we did it.
Prior to that moment, I’d wondered if it was worth it. The effort had been over the top and I felt guilty because it was all for me.
But we did it, changed everything.
Of course, we weren’t done until—well, not until one wall became the backdrop for a solid line of furniture—to make room for the chair. Can you see the nightstand? It fits in so nicely you might think it's always been there.
And here’s the pink chair. Yesterday, on Sunday morning when both of us were more or less recovered, I read in my chair before church. Ken looked in, smiled and said, You know, this is pleasant. Today he staged a picture so you could all see it in all it’s comfortablness.
Keeping with the theme of this blog, I must admit I don’t know where God fits into the equation. Were we out of His will because it was so stressful? That seems like a harsh assessment. And foolish. I don't think everything needs to be so serious.
On the positive side, however, He kept us safe. And when it was done, we could say, We did it!
Maybe God was in it more than we realized.
No comments:
Post a Comment