The cold weather had been distressing. On January 1, 5:00 p.m. the other night - shift worker called to ask if I could take her place since she has the flu. (You must find someone to work your shift.) Of course I consented, recalling how someone helped me last winter when I was in agony with the stomach flu.
Around 8:30 I took each of the dogs for a short outing. I'm careful of the possibility of frostbite in their paws. After the dogs were squared away I went to plug in Lois' car. I lifted the garage door and flipped the light switch. Darkness!
Next I said a short prayer for my truck which sits outside. I hadn't started it for over thirty-six hours, but I had the heater plugged in.
Didn't matter as the truck only made a zapping, clicking noise.
Now the problem was to restore power to the garage. I checked the fuse panel in the garage and from there I went into the basement and checked for a tripped circuit breaker. Next I started to check each junction box on that circuit. I was in and out of the house several times without success.
The pressure built and I was sending up prayers as I needed the truck to start and I needed electricity so I could try to charge the battery. After checking the connections in each box I went outside to see if the garage lights came on. Frustration set in and anger followed as it was now 9:45 and my shift started at 11:00.
My heart beat faster with the urgency of the situation. I would try Lois' car to jump-start the truck. The old Taurus started like a champ. The truck would not.
"What do you want me to do," I prayed angrily, as I put the Taurus back into the garage.
Back into the basement. I shut off the power to the garage and checked several junction boxes. This time I twisted the wire nuts to ensure a good connection. It was ten o'clock and I knew that I wouldn't make it to work.
Back outside, I found the garage lights were on, so now I would connect the battery charger to the truck. Problem was, I had locked myself out of the truck so I couldn't release the hood. (Expletive) There was another set of keys hanging in the house. I would call work to explain the situation. With phone in hand I punched in the numbers with great difficulty. My arthritis reacts when I work outside, bare handed. My hands were also trembling from anxiety and anger.
I explained my plight and I got some help. The assistant manager would cover my shift, bless her heart. I told the person working the desk to convey my extreme gratitude. I took the extra keys and got into the truck, although it was painful for me to turn the key.
I was shivering violently and it was difficult to connect the charger to the battery, but the connection was made. I set the charger for a slow charge. By the morning this truck would start.
After I was in our warm house for a while I began to warm up and my thoughts quit whirling. I took a cup of hot tea upstairs and I had no sooner changed into pajamas that the phone rang. It was the assistant manager. She needed me to walk her through the computer audit.
First I apologized for not making it and she was gracious and sympathetic to the point of putting me at ease. I walked her through for about the next forty-five minutes and the day ended well. I slept well and the next morning the truck started.
I realized how screwed-up my thoughts were the night before. Why did God let the power fail in the garage? Why did the night turn into a hellish cascade of events?
I realized that God had nothing to do with that. Things happen, following the laws of physics, which He established. I realized how foolish I had been. When there is a negative situation and my mind whirls it, whips it into a catastrophe. The devil whispers, "You can't fix this...God caused this, you know. After all He's in control."
I've fallen into that trap hundreds of times. When will I learn? I apologized to God.
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