Tears and Stuff

So the last week has provided WAY more stress than is necessary when:
a) working on a large essay for a class that only has 1 1/2 weeks left
b) helping Brie finish up her Suzuki Book One to have a recital in her honor
c) preparing to move

Of course Saskatchewan is getting extremely high amounts of rain this year.  So much so that some farmers have not planted a single seed in their fields.  A town only a short distance away has already declared it an "agriculture disaster".

For us, time was feeling like it was on "pause".  We are not anxious to deal with goodbyes and things, but the anticipation of everything can be exhausting.  At this point we just want to get it over with and move on with our lives.

Enter the rainwater....

Water, water, everywhere.

Last week this was our theme.

The ground is literally soooo drenched that it had nowhere else to go.  It is now forcing its way into the basements of most buildings around here, including our church, but also our home.  Which will not be our home in another 2 1/2 weeks.

Yep.

We weren't sure whether to cry or yell last week.  It felt very unjust and downright discouraging.

I tried to keep reminding myself that we have MANY blessings, including John's stable job.  We will not have to struggle to keep food on the table, whereas this will be the reality for many due to the excess rain.

So we had water in our basement.  We spent some money and picked up a wet/dry shop vac as well as a dehumidifier to absorb the moisture in the air.  It wasn't keeping up, but our possessions weren't damaged either.

Next came the calls to a local contractor, who came out first thing in the morning to install a sump pump in our basement.  (Our house is 45 years old and has never needed it before this year)  By the way, small town businesses charge far less than they should for the professional work they do!

Then we phoned our insurance company.  The bad news?  Most companies do not cover groundwater seepage.  Regardless of the circumstances.  The good news?  Ours does!!  They sent out a cleanup crew the very next day, and will be back soon to give an estimate for repairs.

We are still a little unsure of how the whole insurance claim process will proceed, since we lose possession of this house very soon.  Yet I do know that all we have to pay is our deductible.  The new homeowners will not be getting an entire house right away, but they will be getting a renovated basement now!  Flooring, drywall and 2x4s will need to be replaced.

Church on Sunday was different than usual.  Many people are going through similar situations with their homes, and the church still had a lot of water.  Yet the singing was great as it was honest in communicating the rough time that this is.  I ended up crying for about half of the singing, partly because it was so appropriate for how I felt, and partly because I knew my time there was coming to an end.

Our church farewell is next week and I'm helping to lead singing with my dear friend Kristi.  We made it through our practice without tears today.  That is until she played the song that she is singing with her sister-in-law on Sunday.  I knew it was coming, but that still didn't soften the flow of tears.

I am going to be a wreck on Sunday.

I'm trying to tell myself that these tears are a good thing.  It means that God blessed me with an amazing best friend, and a wonderful church family that I will miss dearly.  I know that He has many more great things in store for us in our new town.

I just wish I could take my life off of "pause" and hit "fast forward" for a couple of weeks so that I could avoid the goodbyes.  And the tears.