Girls can do Anything!
Kingdom Business
I have 4 days until moving day. I have had to face a couple of curve balls in the past week which have been rather challenging. I am encouraged greatly by how, when we really set our hearts and minds to overcome no matter what the obstacles, God will get us through. He didn’t say it would be easy, but He does get us through somehow.
Last weekend we took our first load on our truck to Taupo. It all went well, but my honey found it physically a bit challenging. I drove us home and as we sat and watched the election results on TV, I watched this man slowly decline. I knew he was in pain, but he was trying to tough it out and be brave, and we thought a good sleep would make everything better. But, with shortness of breath, a grey face, and more regular jolts of pain in the chest, we made the decision at 1am to call 111 and ask for the ambulance.
Given that we currently live 20 minutes south of Cambridge, it took a little while for the St John boys to arrive, but it gave me time to pack a little bag for my love, and once the lads arrived, we were assured that a trip to hospital was very necessary. And so I waved goodbye and tried to get a little bit of sleep, knowing that my honey was in the best possible care, and that I would need to keep my strength up to face the days ahead, whatever they would bring.
After a visit to the hospital the following afternoon, it was evident that this wasn’t just an overnight stay. Once you get admitted to a ward you know that you won’t go home until some things are sorted. And so the waiting game began. Monday there was a visit from some cardiologists. Talk of surgery sometime this week. No real commitment as to when. By Wednesday things were a little frustrating with no indication of if and when surgery would take place. Finally on Thursday morning we were told that heart bypass surgery was scheduled for Tuesday (i.e tomorrow)
It’s great when you have a time frame. We knew our moving date was locked in, and we had a funny feeling that it may be something I would have to manage on my own. I’ve done it before, but it’s so much nicer working with someone else when you have a common purpose. In this case the final week in our house is not going to be like that. Once I worked through the emotional side of facing the facts, it became necessary to make a plan, and pray for help to come!
I have managed to strategically work through each room of the house, and I am so thankful that someone had the foresight to do quite a bit of packing before they ended up in hospital. It wasn’t until Friday that I had the courage to face the garage. What I had in my mind perceived to be a huge job has ended up being quite a pleasant task. Once I got my head around what needed packing, something shifted in me. And most of the tools had already been sorted and packed thankfully.
I took a second carload of gear to Taupo, and I brought my friend Liz back home with me. We packed up the ute with all the tools and garage gear, the barbecue and remainder of our garden equipment and pots. I had been instructed to take photos at every step, which were sent to a room at the hospital, where the Director of Operations was able to guide us with the following step. Things like ‘Don’t leave any ropes dangling’ and ‘Tie everything down tight’. Between Liz and I we tied everything down very tight and then covered the load with a tarpaulin before securing it with rope and ratchets. One of these days I might need a man’s lesson on how to use ratchets properly when you need to tie down a load on a ute. But the girls did it, and we did it pretty well. We truly are both farm girls from way back! The load was secure and Liz drove off at 6pm to take our precious cargo to our new garage. The ute will remain parked up in the garage until I arrive at the end of the week.
One of the downsides of having a heart bypass is that there is to be no heavy lifting for at least 6 weeks after surgery, so a lot of the hard work may be left to me. I’m ok with that; I actually don’t mind rolling my sleeves up and getting my hands dirty. I am delighted though, to be able to cross ‘garage’ off my list of things to do, and I am thankful that my list is getting shorter as each day passes.
I just have the kitchen left to pack and clean, and I’m aware there could be a few interruptions with hospital visits over the next few days. The hospital is 45 minutes away, so this needs to be taken into account when planning the week ahead. I think I’m on track. It’s not quite how we had planned to move, but it’s evident that my honey has been taken right out of the picture and it’s important that he rests up before and after surgery. It will be nice to pick him up from hospital once he is well enough to come home and it will be lovely to drive to our new house which will by then be mostly unpacked I hope. I look forward to saying ‘Welcome Home!’ This is where the next stage of our lives together will begin, and we know that is at the heart of the matter.
Please pray for my mate on Tuesday. It’s big surgery. And it’s always comforting to know that others are holding you in their hearts when there’s big stuff going down. All your prayers for us are gratefully received – as we both step in to this new season we know it is preparation for what is ahead. We choose to embrace our future with open arms and look forward to all that’s coming.
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