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hump day

During after-school band practices, our band director would always call us up to his tower for a "word" before we called it a day at 5pm.  On Wednesdays, he would always say, "Weeellll, we've now made it past hump day."
Sometimes the arrival of noon on Wednesday scares me. The week's half-way point has arrived and my idea of what is to be done is still mountainous. Other times it comes and inwardly I mentally pump my fist and shout for I'm really getting stuff done.
Today though feels a bit different. I'm at the end of a tunnel. :)
Two months ago today I was very frustrated and a tad overwhelmed. I thought if I could just make it to this week then things would be peaceful and I could drop dead in exhaustion. But then I went and fell. Not once, but twice.  As if having a swollen kneecap and football-size/shape bruise on my abdomen wasn't enough, I had to add an egg-sized, bruised knot on the other knee, mis-align my pelvic bones, and fracture my elbow. I just THOUGHT my life was hectic. Sewing, cleaning, gardening, raising biddies...everything came to a screeching halt. We switched into coping mechanism and made it with the help of family and friends.
And now? Everything (bone-wise) is back in place. My elbow joint is "frozen" (it can bend but doesn't want to) but we're slowly making progress with exercise and therapy on that starts tomorrow. The sewing? Friends pitched in to help and we bought quite a few costumes. The quilting? Ummmm, we're making great progress. Our deadline is Sunday, June 5th. Ask me more about that later. Gardening? We've scaled back.
My house is now a wreck; the ironing pile overflows. (But that would most likely have happened even without the injury.) Weddings? All done. Travel? Sadly finished as well, though it's good to be home. And during the midst of it all, my Mom had surgery and my hometown was ravished by a tornado. And me? I was stuck here, unable to go or help anyone. Reality is, being away and not being able to do anything but pray was probably the best thing, the thing they needed the most.
I'm now back to just life: grieving with a friend who lost her Dad, praying for a friend whose Dad is dying, checking on my Mom whose health is a daily struggle, sorting through things in my mind, attempting to sift through truth and fiction, running errands for people, and wishing the process of sanctification wasn't quite so difficult or everlasting (from earth's perspective).
I can't tell you that through the humility of not being able to comb or fix my own hair, drive, write my own name, eat right-handed, or sometimes even get dressed without help that I grew in grace and wisdom. I was extremely frustrated and aggravated. But even in the midst of a trial where I semi-failed, I can sigh with relief that it's over and truly exhale. God's mercies are NEW EVERY MORNING! And because of that, I can focus on today, and not yesterday. Hump day, indeed! ;)

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