When Did It Happen?

My dad is amazing. He could do anything he pu
t his mind to. He could build items for our home and school projects, he could work on cars and make them run again, he could plant acre size gardens. Do you get the picture my dad is/was amazing. He was so strong yet so very gentle. He gave nick names to all my friends when I was growing up. In fact, he was so well liked that my friends threw him a surprise birthday party one year. They brought him gifts they would have given each other. He was so touched by it all. He would take us camping and fishing as a family and with our friends. In fact I remember him inviting two or three guys from the church we attended to go fishing with us because they enjoyed fishing. We would take a day trip out in the country and would sometimes end the day at the Dairy Bar for hot fudge sundaes or banana splits. He taught me how to throw a baseball so I could play with the other children in our area.

My dad and mom built their own home when they were in their sixties in Southern IL. He kept cows that once a year he would slaughter one and share the meat with my sister and I. He even had hogs and only charged me ten cents a pound for the sausage.



Then one day he started having pains in his chest. He ended up with a triple by-pass, but never had a heart attack, thank you Lord. When we brought him home from the hospital he immediately called a Realtor and put his farm up for sale. He loved living on that hill but he did not want something to happen to him and leave mom out there alone. So to my joy and happiness they moved to NC in 1995. They lived with us for about nine months until they found a house which ended up being less than a mile from me.



He started taking things a bit easier after moving here. He did build mom a storage shed in the backyard and still planted a garden but much much smaller than those in the past. He had a few surgeries, a hip replacement for one. I smile when I think about all the things we have to write down when we go to a doctor for the first time. He has had so many things done, back surgery, compound fracture of his left arm which now has two metal plates holding the bones together (that's a story in itself). All this wear and tear on his body has taken its toll. Dad has had several mini strokes for the past three and half years. Each one has robbed him of a little more of his strength.



Yesterday I had to start taken steps to make it easier for him to get around in his home. We will be moving him from the den to the living room due to being difficult for him to get up and down the two steps to the den.

My dad is my hero and in my mind he is the same as when I was little so I ask again when did it happen? When did he become so weak in body? The Lord took mom home three and half years ago and now dad is wondering when the Lord will take him. He is ready to go, but I am not. I know in my heart that he would be so much happier in heaven with the Lord so in a way I am ready. The Lord has given me so many wonderful memories of both my parents that will last me my lifetime and for that I praise Him.

I told dad last night when he thanked me for helping him that I am just paying him back a small way for all the things he has done for me through the years.

Did I?????

Usually on Sundays I fix a roast with potatoes, carrots and onion for our dinner. My Dad and niece Robin comes over to share the meal with us. As dad says,"Cheapest place in town to eat." He also takes home the majority of leftovers. I enjoy this time of the week with my dad because you never know what discussion will be brought to the table. This week we discussed the workings of the minor baseball league.

Well my roast and all the fixings with it were placed in the slow cooker ready for me to plug it in on the way out the door to church. Oh the aroma we are greeted with when we come home is so conforting. Well as we pulled into the garage and I opened my car door expecting to be greeted with the wonderful aroma of cooking meat I was surprised to smell nothing. As I start up the stairs to the kitchen I start the question "Did I remember to plug in the slow cooker?" The answer of couse is NO!!!!

Now comes the frantic moment what am I going to serve for dinner???? Thank you Lord for a wonderful husband who immediately steps in and says "Smithfield BBQ and Chicken". It helps that he had wanted some of their chicken, so this was a good solution to both issues.

So now when I leave on a Sunday I am pretty sure I will be plugging in the slow cooker. Trouble is the "Did I?" question is being asked more often, I wonder why?