After the car was out of sight, she went back into the house. The house had felt so alive and full the last week. Now it felt dead and empty. She felt sad. She’d have visitors at Christmas, but that was five months away.
She headed to the kitchen. The table was a sheer disaster zone! She stood, remembering how irritated she was when her kids would leave the table a mess before going to school. Was it THAT hard to take an empty bowl and put it into the dishwasher? It was still a bit irritating when her grandkids didn’t clean up, but it was also sad to think that this was the last time she’d see this table so messy for many, many months. A sign that she was alone.
She started cleaning the kitchen. After this, she’d go and start cleaning the bedrooms. Tomorrow, she’d go back to her part time job as church secretary, and her life would return to normal.
The telephone rang. It was Pastor Jim.
“I’m sorry to bother you,” he said. “I know you said you’d be back in the office tomorrow. Could you come today? At least for a few minutes? We have a minor crisis.”
She looked around the empty kitchen. It was just about clean. The sheets didn’t have to be washed until December. And the house felt oppressively empty.
“I can be there in an hour!” she said.