2 weeks later...

There are a few things I'd like to pass on. Some of them are funny. Some of them are not so much. But it's all part of the story, and it needs to be told.

The Hunting Party

The other day I was asked to check for a package that might have arrived at the house across the field from me. It was extremely reminiscent of I Am Legend, where the remains of what life was like before tragedy struck were evident everywhere. Even in the middle of the afternoon it felt strange and eery. There was a deep sense of loss. Like something had died. Maybe I was just inventing things in my mind. Maybe I'm just too close to the situation now. Either way, my home seemed warm and inviting as I returned from my errand!

Tom, Leah, and Chad have been picking through their house little by little. It's been such a huge undertaking, and they're finding that looking at the house as a whole is too overwhelming, a method that doesn't seem to be very effective.

They've changed their plan of attack and are now trying to take it room by room. First they try to identify what was in one particular room to begin with and then pick through it thoroughly hoping that things really are where they left them. Not only are most of the objects in the rubble unidentifiable, but many things are not where they left them. If you've ever seen someone operate a fire hose you know there's a lot of power in those suckers, and things moved all around the house while the firefighters did their job. Let's just add one more complication, right?

So the work commences on the house today and tomorrow. You might ask yourself, "At what point do you give up and just finish tearing the thing down?" I don't know the answer because I've never had my house burn down. Leah often tells me that nobody's given her a handbook on what you're supposed to do in the event you lose everything in a fire. There aren't any hard and fast rules. I think anything the Abbotts can find that they have some ownership over means the world right now. I know that for me personally there are some things, like my wedding ring for instance, that I would be willing to dig through ashes and rubble if there were any chance that it had survived.

Gourmet Dinner

Now I have to share about dinner last night. They have been given some great stuff to help them start over again. But they've only been in the house since Monday. So it's not like they're used to the things that they have yet. To them it still feels like someone else's stuff that they're using.

Leah was determined to make a nice beef stroganoff dinner for her family. She had all of the ingredients and she was prepared...until she realized the pans which were so generously given to them were too small for what she was doing. No problem. Leah's ingenuity has gotten her out of tight fixes before. So she had to boil more than one pan of pasta. A little inconvenient, but she's just so grateful to have anything at all to cook with that she's not complaining!

Then came the can of beef. There's no can opener in the house. One of the many small conveniences you don't think about until you don't have one. She does have a tool that punches holes in the can though. So she began to use that thinking she'd just have to make several holes in order to get the lid off. Inconvenient sure, but she's not complaining because 5 days ago she had nothing.

The first few punches were going smoothly, but the integrity of the can began to be compromised as she punched away. Pretty soon the juice was flying everywhere, but she ignored it because surely she was almost done! Just a few more punches, right? Sort of.

The last remaining punches were of course the hardest since she couldn't get a good grasp on the can any longer. By the time she was done she had beef chunks and juice all over herself!

A pretty ridiculous ordeal for dinner, but don't worry. After getting herself cleaned up she presented a lovely meal to her family who oohed and aahed appropriately over it!


Whose stuff is this?

You know that disoriented feeling you get sometimes when you wake up in a strange place and forget where you are? The Abbott's surroundings aren't familiar enough yet that it feels like home. It's hard for them to accept that the new things in their new house are really theirs. Tom asked Leah, "Soooo....if we ever move do we take the couches with us?" One of the many things in their lives right now that is just going to take some time to get used to!

Update on Donations

We're up to $340. That's awesome! Rent is due today and while it won't cover the entire amount (we're short $160) it'll help! So keep the donations coming in. No amount is too small. $3 donated is $3 more than the family would have had. Maybe they can even buy a can opener once rent is taken care of! :)