Is Company Coming?

 

It was a hot spring day, 88 degrees this afternoon, and a bright clear sky.  The adoration chapel I had visited had the a/c turned up high, and it blew an almost cold breeze on my arms, so I was in no hurry to leave.  Besides the good Company there, I knew my house was probably a lot warmer.  I had the inspector come out just this week, for both my heating and a/c.  Both are in top condition, but for years I have had a goal of not turning on the a/c before June, and the furnace not on before November.  And in some years, I’ve actually been successful!

After dinner at home, I was playing some computer games at my kitchen table, when suddenly --- BOOM!!  And when I looked out the window, it was cloudy and raining.  An hour or two later, I heard my neighbor dragging his garbage cans out to the curb for tomorrow’s pickup.  The rain had stopped, so I went out and made conversation.  I thanked him for putting up the basketball net and playing with his boys.  I know many examples of kids gone astray because of missing or “too busy” fathers.  That personal relationship with a loving dad really matters, especially in these times.

I commented that the temperature had dropped noticeably during the rain, so I excused myself, went back into my house and grabbed a book, and went for a walk.  I used to be known as “the book man” to people within a few miles of my house, as walking while reading was a part of my normal day --- until a few years ago.  Maybe I can start again.  Walking back home after reading a few pages while on a short tour of my sub-division, I noticed a male and female duck standing by the tree in my front yard.  Over the years, I’ve often had nesting ducks under the bushes in my back yard, but I just this week noticed how overgrown my front bushes are.  So, as I approached them, I said: “Well, duckies, there are some nice bushes around my house.  You are welcome to stay.”  And as I went in my front door, I saw them make a bee-line toward my front bushes.

Maybe I’ll have company again this year.  I’ll have to keep a lookout, especially if I see momma duck sitting on a nest in my front yard --- near the new basketball net next door.  Maybe I’ll need to have another conversation with my neighbor, if I see that company has arrived for a while.  His boys are too young to have once seen ducks in my yard in the past, but previous neighbors’ kids were fascinated, especially when the ducklings began cheeping.

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And speaking of company, reminds me of the conversation I had yesterday afternoon.  My other neighbor’s parents were visiting again.  The mother told me that she comes on the weekends now, when her daughter has her chemo treatments because “it gets pretty bad.”  My 44-year-old neighbor is fighting a stage 4 liver cancer.  I confided in the mom how my sister had also fought, and the years she stayed were a blessing for her daughters, all of whom had new children during her cancer.  And I mentioned some miraculous cures I know of; prayers matter.  I told her if she and her husband were ever in need of a place to stay while visiting, my spare bedroom is always available.  Company is always welcome at my house.  She thanked me.  In a way though, that is not company I’d enjoy having, but I trust God is in control.  Always.