“They say things happen in three’s,” she said as she unbuckled her youngest from the confines of his car seat. My son and daughter-in-love, forced from their home because of flooding, were taking refuge with us while the insurance work began. Just days before, their five year old middle son broke his arm playing on a friend’s trampoline. Two pins in his elbow didn’t seem to slow him down. It was probably more traumatic for his parents to sit in a waiting room while he went through surgery. When he got home, he was showered with well-wishes and “brave boy” gifts from family and friends. One gift that captivated his attention was a toy that changed colour in hot or cold water. While his mother was attending to her day home kids, planning their next outdoor adventure, he filled up an upstairs bathroom sink with water and forgot to turn off the faucet when his mom called him to come for the forty minute walk. They returned home to find the upstairs bathroom flooded, the rug soaked in their bonus room, with significant water damage to drywall upstairs and downstairs. I got a call from my son a few hours after the damage had been assessed, “We may have to stay with you for a few days.”
With only an hour to prepare ourselves to welcome my son, his wife, their three boys, with their dog and cat into our home for an extended stay, my husband ordered pizza, and I ensured the beds had clean linens etc. I hastily muttered as I tidied, “Lord, let our home be a sanctuary of peace for them.”
Meeting them in the driveway, I hugged on my exhausted son, and somewhat frazzled daughter-in-law, and kissed my three grandsons as they ran to me with loaded backpacks full of “essentials” for their sleepover. Emmy, the cat was a little confused by the new accommodations, but Marley, the dog bolted from the car, excited to run around our acreage again with wild abandon. She was a regular visitor and loved playing fetch the ball.
It was my sweet husband who suggested the family take up residence in our RV where they could have privacy and their own space. The boys were delighted to be camping at Grandma and Grandpa’s and the oldest boy, thanked his younger brother for causing the flood to make this camp out an unexpected reality. His parents were not amused.
We fed them pizza, and let the boys play much later than their normal bedtime, so they fell asleep quickly, tucked into separate sleeping bags in a pullout bed in the trailer. We watched the sun set with my son and again I prayed that he and his wife would sleep peacefully despite this upheaval in their lives.
My daughter-in-law had to shut her day home down for the week but invited three of her day home kids to our acreage to swim, play at the playground that my husband had built for our kids when they were young, and to enjoy several days being on a “field trip” at Grandma’s house. When parents picked them up after a day of picnics and play, one boy cried that he didn’t want to leave!
After a full day, my daughter-in-law curled up in a lawn chair to watch the sunset with us and sighed, “I needed this!” My son was playing soccer with his boys, the dog barking after him, trying to steal the ball. Memories flooded back of my boy chasing his sisters, peels of laughter, childhood squeals of joy reverberating like echoes from the past. Watching him with his boys brought tears to my eyes.
“I needed this too.” I silently declared to God.
I know my son and his family will face challenging weeks ahead getting house repairs done. Having just gone through a renovation ourselves, we know the ups and downs of a house in disarray. Trying to keep up with three little boys is a full-time job, add to that one with a broken arm, I know it will be even more demanding. Thankfully, my son’s in-laws are always at the ready to lend a hand, and we are here when called upon too.
I am thankful God answered my prayers this past week by allowing all of us to memory-make and bestow to us a sense of peace in the midst of calamity.
Lynn Dove's Journey Thoughts 