On the Eve of Departure

It is the eve before our departure. As Darlene has reported to several friends, “Our bags are packed, but not yet zipped.”

We have been involved this past week caring for a myriad of preparatory details. We got all our bills paid (in advance) including our federal, state and property taxes. We downgraded the insurance on our autos, and suspended (put on vacation) our cell phone and internet connections. Etc., etc.

We now consider it a divine providence that we were delayed and remained at home this past month, for two BIG reasons.

(1) Our 21-year old furnace went “caput” the week before Christmas! (This could have proved very problematic, if it had occurred while we gone for an extended time.) And the timing was perfect: We fell within a three-month window for getting a NY state rebate through our gas and electric provider for installing a “high efficiency” furnace and programmable thermostat; moreover, we can claim 30% of the cost as a federal tax deduction on our 2011 return. These are both part of current “stimulus” programs, and our participation in stimulating the economy makes us feel really good!

(2) On December 15, our older son Mark and his wife Dorcas brought an 8-year girl named Isabelle into their home as the first step towards adoption. We got to be part of that process, and share in their joy through frequent phone and email exchanges. We also got to be part of their support network, when Isabelle’s birth mother unexpectantly died the following week, on Christmas eve.

The injured hand is healing nicely. (Some folk think it looks “awful”; others say it looks “really good”!) While we still must remain vigilant in caring for it, the risk of infection has decreased dramatically in the past month.

In God’s timing, we leave tomorrow.