A Different Perspective, Mary Pat Johns
A four-gen picture–Mary Pat on left holding Ria, Mom, Annabelle, and Nancy holding Ellie
My daughter’s house flooded. A bathroom sink faucet got left on upstairs—and water ran all night. My daughter and her husband woke up to their oldest screaming, “It’s raining in the house!” And so it was. What to do? They turned the water off and called their insurance agent. By early afternoon, the professionals had finished tearing out the carpet and all the wet sheetrock on the ceiling and lower walls. It was weird how the water ran in a path that missed most of the kitchen but snaked through the pantry into the garage.
They moved to a hotel for a few days. But since they had a fully functioning kitchen, and one unharmed bedroom and bathroom, the first adjuster said a hotel wasn’t a necessary expense. (My daughter and son-in-law asked for a second opinion.) It’s been a tough one, but my daughter has held onto her faith, choosing to look beyond the water damage.
Recently, she and the girls visited Victoria for the day. They went to the zoo and enjoyed the exhibits. That afternoon, we visited a patriotic celebration at Morada East where the girls got to see their great-grandmother, Gigi. By the time the adults made our way into the clubhouse, the girls had already found the free food and were eating bags of chips. They also won cakes. My daughter wasn’t crazy about taking two cakes home, so we settled for one.
We all rode in the shuttle to see the “open house.” Even the girls figured out it looked like Gigi’s house with different furniture. Gigi showed them the flowers and new rocks in her small flower bed. She adored spending time with her great grandchildren.
Once Nancy and the girls made it back to my house, we ate cake. The entire cake. In our defense, there were six of us, and it was a small cake. Our flimsy reasoning for eating too much cake revolved around not taking leftovers home. Yeah. Flimsy.
It was a heartening visit. I was glad to see my daughter and the girls. It thrilled Gigi to see everybody, and the girls loved the visit. Win-wins are my favorite.
A few days later, my daughter called to ask if they left behind a pair of sandals and a green water bottle. I looked and sure enough, four-year-old Ellie had tucked her shoes into a cubbyhole in our mudroom. Tidy but easy to overlook. My husband is taking them to her along with a new set of bathroom cabinets, new flooring, and a custom addition to my daughter’s kitchen island. Her refurbished home will have the improvements she’s always wanted.
We never found the green water bottle. I thought I saw their cousin with it, so I asked my son. He said seven-year-old Emmitt had a green water bottle, but his had a Minecraft logo on it. This past weekend, Emmitt found the walkie-talkies and wanted Mamaw to play with him. He kept saying, “Talk to me, Mamaw,” so I did. I asked if by any chance he had picked up his cousin’s green water bottle. No, he didn’t know anything about it either. I wonder if we’ll ever know where it went.
Is there something in your life that’s a big, hairy tangle right now? Let me encourage you that God isn’t intimidated by our mountains or our messes. Scripture says, “And we know that God causes all things to work together for good for those who love God, to those who are called according to his purpose.” (Romans 8:28, NASB) He can take an unfixable mess and cause it to turn out far better than we could ever think or imagine. Nothing is impossible for him. Our job is to believe.