Reason #5100

I am overwhelmed with God's goodness.
And am feeling much better.
And am reflecting on Reason # 5,100.

We came home from church on Sunday in two different cars (someone had returned a borrowed vehicle to us). I left earlier to bring home a miserable Pixie. Ibuprofen delivered and her bundled to bed, I threw on rice and prepped asparagus to go with it. We had invited folks home for lunch, and there was yummy beef in the crock pot.

My throat had been hurting though, and I discovered during the prep that I had a low fever; I crawled into bed and neither Pixie nor I joined J, our boys and our guest at lunch.

While I was asleep, J got the email requesting ALL of his mid-tenure Review paperwork ONE WEEK from Monday. ONE WEEK! Shocking (to us, anyway). He had heard it would be by March 11, maybe earlier. February 1? With one week's warning?

I won't even tell you about all of the essays, references, and other paperwork involved. If J didn't have a good start on it (which he does), it would be impossible. As it is, it would be a significant...shift in our potentially planned time allocation over the next 8 days. J and I have a very tightly-bound-up schedule. I was frustrated for him. And I was frustrated for me, too.

And then, the Wheels Fell Off the Wagon!! (Sing it with me!)

I did not know WHAT was going on. Overnight my throat got worse. And my muscles and bones felt like I'd been kicked around a while. Pixie was in a lot of pain, crying and not sleeping through much of the night. I tried to comfort her, although my fever was now over 103 and I wasn't seeing straight. (I didn't get him up to help with Pixie, by the way, as he was up with her SATURDAY night). Finally at 2:30am I told her she could read if it distracted her from the pain, which she did until 5, when she could have more Tylenol. I will not go into all of the grossness involved. In fact, I can skip anything about me until Tuesday, when I really got out of bed and onto the couch. I am trying to give you a picture of what J saw when he got up the next morning...Monday...his no-classes, I'm going to really-get-a-lot-done-day...His countdown-to-review-papers day 1, besides a usually busy and productive-type day.


He saw a Perfect Storm pursuing his must-be-disciplined week.

And what did he do?

He sent me back to bed. He brought me the second handset to our new cordless phones, and taught me how to use it as an intercom to call him in the front of the house...and he turned the ringer off so I wouldn't be disturbed. He called me out sick from my Spanish classes. He canceled a meeting I had. He took Pixie to the doctor....and took Bud and Wombles with him. He brought me Gatorade. And ice chips. And his laptop, already cued up on Netflix to a BBC series he thought I'd like. I cried about how I was sorry, and he acted like it was no big deal. He canceled his meeting with his faculty mentor about the review process. He canceled his office hours. He went to the pharmacy with three children and got a prescription for Pixie's antibiotics filled...and one for me, too. I told the pediatrician on the phone that when he walked in with that for me, I was so happy I cried (we thought I had the flu). I don't even know what else he did because I was absent, but I know our children were fed, clothed, and put to bed at appropriate times. I know that he never complained or even let me know he was stressed. If I had been in my head I would have thought that a little kooky, but I wasn't and was just so grateful to wallow without the guilt.

Tuesday, he was ready to cancel all of his classes and another important meeting. We decided to try him going in--it would depend a lot on what the three kiddoes did--so he took the cell phone in his pocket to teach. (Mercifully, the kids were engaged with the new movies my friend brought, and I didn't really have to get off of the couch all day.) He came home and made supper.

This morning, I found a line of Psalm 15 running through my head--memorized long ago in the King James--"He sweareth to his own hurt and changeth not." My still-slow brain clambered around, thinking, What did J swear? Oh, Riiight. In sickness and in health. I am so grateful, and a little in awe, actually, of J these past three days. Part of it is the sickness thing, although we talked about that tonight and acknowledged that there's likely worse to come at some point. But the fearless change--or maybe revealing-- of priorities quite takes my breath away. The change was in direction, at last minute, which I am so terrible at doing. What a gift to get to see it done so well. I hope I can learn.

Love, Love, Love you, J. Thank you.



And here's Psalm 15, in more modern language (ESV):

15:1 O Lord, who shall sojourn in your tent?
Who shall dwell on your holy hill?

2 He who walks blamelessly and does what is right
and speaks truth in his heart;
3 who does not slander with his tongue
and does no evil to his neighbor,
nor takes up a reproach against his friend;
4 in whose eyes a vile person is despised,
but who honors those who fear the Lord;
who swears to his own hurt and does not change;
5 who does not put out his money at interest
and does not take a bribe against the innocent.
He who does these things shall never be moved.