Life

The past few weeks have been a succession of unexpected hurdles, with more jumping ahead.  It started a couple of weeks ago when our working van door broke.  The motor blew and the cable snapped.  I attempted to force it shut because I had to get the kids from Nicholas' birthday party home.  Bad idea.  I broke the roller assembly and dented and scratched the side of the van.  It may have been a much cheaper fix had we not had to replace the roller assembly.  The way it is, we left the door to be a manual door, making them both manual (the other door broke on vacation two years ago in the same way) to avoid paying $800.  Overall, no big deal.  Then, last Tuesday, I returned home from yoga to find water rushing out of our garage and the fire alarm going off.  After a frantic call to 911and another frantic call to Jon at work, we were left to deal with the aftermath of major flooding on two levels of our house.  Cause?  A $3.00 plastic nut on our main level toilet which connects the input water hose.  We lived with our dear friends (family), the Adkins' until today.  Actually, I left on Saturday to commence a previously scheduled trip to visit my sister in Florida.  So, Jon remained at the Adkins' with the kids until today and then moved us all into our hotel (where I will join them tomorrow when I return) until our house becomes livable, which is undetermined for now.  We are hoping the final hurdle occurred yesterday.  Jon had a minor car accident, but one which will require repairs to our van...nothing major, just annoying to have to deal with at the moment.

As we jump from one hurdle to the next, we are so grateful for insurance, mitigation companies that know what they are doing, kind neighbors, friends who truly are family, and family who are as supportive as possible from far away.  I am particularly grateful for a husband who is reasonable and calm when faced with unexpected circumstances...oh, and so giving.  I'm not sure I would have been as willing to let him go on a planned vacation in the middle of such a mess.  But, he did and I'm grateful.  I will come home tomorrow more calm and rested and ready to face life in a hotel room with three kids all day.  FUN!

I have always believed there is something to learn from every circumstance we encounter in our lives.  The flooding, in particular, gave me an incredible amount more empathy for people whose homes are damaged by flooding or fires.  Displacement, no matter how brief, is difficult.  I have gained perspective, which is always a gift.  Finally, I have a new appreciation for how Jon and I handle challenges together, which has given me new confidence going forward.  Oh, and though it wouldn't have mattered in this case, as I was only gone for two hours, we have also learned about the importance of turning off the water to our toilets when we go on vacation.