tablets of human hearts

Day 65

Sometimes it’s hard to even concentrate. And it’s definitely harder to even plan. I made a list of things that will have to be done in the recovery/restoration of our home. The list spans three pages so far. Each task is not a simple task. Each task requires some sort of measuring and calculating or a trip to the home improvement store or an installation process. Jon just looked at my list, shook his head and called me nuts. For me, the list provides some sort of sense of control in an otherwise out of control world.

I attempted to do some shopping on Saturday, since it’s hard to shop during the week; working until four, the boys to pick up, meals to make, and oh by the way, the majority of the businesses close early because they no longer have the employees to remain open to the pre-Katrina regular hours. The shopping trip was a major frustration.

We stopped at Party City first, since Jonny wanted a costume for Halloween. I think everyone else on the coast was there. Well, everyone except the individuals who were also at Walmart and Home Depot. I wanted to stop at Home Depot next, to purchase our first round of paint. Jon called me on the cell phone and told me not to bother, it was packed and lines were ridiculously long. So I skipped Home Depot and tried Walmart in Gulfport.

After circling the large parking lot with dozens of other cars and finding not one single parking spot, I decided to drive to D’Iberville and try the Walmart there. At least I was able to find a parking spot. By the time I finished at Walmart, it was time to head home. Jon and I had to get ready to go to the Navy Ball. The Navy Ball was held in Louisiana, about an hour from Diamondhead. Attending the Ball pretty much took away time in the afternoon and evening that we could have spent working on the house. We went because it was, after all, the Navy Ball.

We found out yesterday that the house we’re staying at has a lease that has been arranged for next month. So we have to be moved out by December 1^st. I am quite overwhelmed by the thought since our house is absolutely empty. No furniture, no countertops, no cabinets. Everything we were able to save is spread out between the upstairs bedrooms (stacked up all over the rooms), the garage and the house where we are currently staying. I really couldn’t tell you where anything is at, and in some cases, if we still have a particular thing. I don’t function well in disorganization and chaos.

On the upside, Jon works better with a deadline. So, maybe this will be a blessing in disguise and we’ll have to press forward to be ready to move. I think it covers about a quarter of my three-page list. We did find out today that our cabinets are scheduled to be delivered on November 21^st.

We will not be able to visit family for Thanksgiving due to our moving deadline, but we will be able to hopefully use the time to install the cabinets. I am in the process of getting cost estimates for countertops. I didn’t realize the countertops could cost half as much as the cabinets.   We are looking at concrete, solid surface and laminates. We also have to make a decision on the flooring, if we want all carpet again, or wood laminate floors.

So many decisions, it can be quite overwhelming.

Hanging in there

Grace & Peace

Day 62

Two months. And clean up continues. If you would like to see some more pictures of the coast, visit http://www.gulfcoastnews.com/KatrinaPhotosMain.htm. The link on the page takes you to more photos that really capture what it looks like down here. (I checked the link before posting for the 10 year anniversary and it includes pictures from several years after, as well as a link to additional photos.)

We’re trying to get over the sheetrock hump. It is all hung and floated; we just need to finish sanding and texturing. With work and activities, we haven’t had a chance to work on the house all week. Today, Jon and Rocky will hopefully get to the texturing. I am going to Home Depot to try to start buying paint. We’ve ordered our kitchen cabinets.   Since the color of our cabinets we had was discontinued two years ago, we had to replace all the cabinets. They should be delivered sometime around Thanksgiving. Jon will be installing them himself. Tuesday, Jon and I will take the van to have the window fixed and visit the flooring company to order flooring and carpet. We were hoping to be in our home by Thanksgiving, but now I’m hoping we’ll be in by Christmas. We haven’t even had an opportunity to start furniture shopping to replace all the furniture we lost.

Well, I need to get moving if I want to get anything accomplished today.

Will try to write some more later. A friend reminded me that I am overdue on an email with the rest of Beth Moore’s study.

God is good.

Grace & Peace

Day 54

We’ve been hard at work on our house. Sometimes it seems as if we’re making progress. Sometimes it seems as if the daunting task will never end.

Jon called from Home Depot. It was the second time he called while out on an errand – he and his dad were on a door finding mission. For some reason, I thought “Oh no! They’ve had an accident.” Close. When I answered the phone, Jon said that an eighteen-wheeler blew a tire right next to them on the interstate. When it did, a piece hit the side van window, shattering it. As Jon described to me what happened, two thoughts came to mind simultaneously. First, I thought “O Lord, just what we don’t need. Why did you allow this to happen? It’s not like we don’t have enough difficulties.” The second thought was “Thank you Lord that you protected them. It could have been so much worse.”

I took a break from sanding dry wall after I hung up the phone. I went to outside, got the mail and sat down in the sunshine to think about the situation. As I thought about the broken window, it occurred to me that it is only a broken window. I opened the mail and read a short letter from Lauren Libby, Vice President of Navigator Ministries. He writes, “The secret to obtaining freedom is learning to think like Jesus – to see the suffering, challenges and conflicts as God’s way of weaning us into the freedom of pursuing His plan for our lives.”

I thought, “Now how in the world can all these difficulties we’re experiencing be to our benefit? What can I possibly get out of it all?”

That’s when I thought about my two reactions to the broken window. One represents our worldly selfish reactions. The other represents a grateful heart focused on God and his purpose for us. I am thankful because Wednesday I was praying for a new attitude (mine had become quite sullen and self pitying). Just the fact that I had a thankful thought at the moment of bad news means that the Lord is working on my attitude.

Hey, I have to lay claim to the small victories when I can. Sometimes, during times like these, they are too far apart.

May the Lord continue His good work in you.

Grace & Peace

Day 46

We’ve had just a little excitement over the last couple of days.

Monday was a holiday and we spent the day working on the house. Daniel and his friends moved a huge pile of tree debris to a spot beside the road. Thankfully they were able to get everything moved because Tuesday, the debris removers showed up. The tree debris was removed and they also started on the household debris. Around eight in the evening on Tuesday, as Jon and I were relaxing, we received a phone call from our next-door neighbor (we’re still living on the other side of Diamondhead).

He wanted to let us know that the workers had been working after dark, and in doing so; they managed to break our water main with their big pieces of equipment. Obviously, they stopped working, but we had a twenty-foot geyser in our front yard. Our neighbor had called our neighborhood security, but they weren’t much help.

Jon went over to investigate and to make sure the water wasn’t running toward our house. Just what we needed: to be flooded again. While he was gone, Jonny and I said a prayer that we would be able to get the water stopped and that it wouldn’t flood our home. Jon was able to direct the water flow so it wasn’t spraying toward the side of the house.

When he returned from the house, he called the water company with a number I found on a recent water bill. There was an emergency contact on the after business hours voice message and Jon was able to talk to someone. A crew from the water company came out right away and fixed the break.

The next morning, we drove by to see if the water was off. It was, but there is a huge muddy mess in our front yard. The debris removal crew was in the middle of removing our debris (and tearing up our yard) when they hit the water main. I’m assuming they finished the job on Wednesday, but we’ll find out this evening when we go over to the house.

It’s weird, but part of me feels a sense of loss with the removal of our household debris. I know it was ruined, I know we had it piled by the road to be disposed of, but in a small way, once it began to be removed, I felt as if our earthly treasures were being ripped away again. It seemed as if the wound of loss had been reopened.

We didn’t go over to the house last night, but went to church instead. We left the boys at home, but when we were at church, I was wishing we had brought them. The service consisted of Jon and I and the pastor and his family. But that is okay. There was such a sense of spiritual sweetness among us. It felt like home, like this is exactly where God wanted us to be. We discussed the things that are going on in our lives, sang some worship songs, discussed Psalm 95, and petitioned at the Throne of Grace for wisdom, guidance and direction.

Psalm 95 tells us that “In his hand are the depths of the earth, and the mountain peaks belong to him. The sea is his, for he made it and his hands formed the dry land.”   I am reading a book called A Case for a Creator by Lee Strobel.   If you are interested in science and want to read about respected, award-winning scientists discussing the evidence for intelligent design, this is the book. The Psalmist was so right when he described the Lord’s fingerprint in everything: the depths of the earth, the mountain peaks, and even the seas and land. The evidence for a creator actually overwhelms the idea of evolution.

What is even more amazing is that the Creator of the universe desires to be intimately involved in our lives. He has a plan for each and every one of us. We are told in Psalm 95, “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts…” May we each seek Him in the quiet places. May we hear His voice and may our hearts be soft enough to consider His words and to obey Him.

I know I was supposed to write about the Saturday portion of Beth Moore’s simulcast, but we’ll have to save that for another day.

May God bless you as you go about your busy daily lives.

Grace & Peace