Blessing Upon Blessing

Today was a hard day, and things became much worse before they got better. But amid some of the craziest chaos I have recently experienced, I felt surrounded by blessings.

Surrounded by friends this morning, I shared the crazy situation we faced. Each strongly recommended calling the movers and asking to postpone arrival of our boxes. This could only make the situation worse, and waiting a few more days would cause no real problems.

I called. They had already arrived in Shenzhen, after a few hours of work loading and driving the truck from the warehouse in Guangzhou. Sure, they could postpone. It would cost 5,000 RMB, or about $750. For this decision, I would need to speak with the management.

I called Mark, our contact at the hotel. Mark came to our room with a very sympathetic smile on his face. The very sympathetic smile never left his face, although his eyes frequently changed expression, touching on both terrified and about to cry. He stayed for over 2 hours. He made promises, which he took back when I asked for them in writing. He lied. He offered to store our items and move them into another apartment at another time, which would effectively lock us into their choice of options in the future, as well as canceling out any insurance provided by our movers.

No. I made myself clear. If I accepted our shipment today, I would not move from this apartment. If I sent the movers away, the management would find themselves responsible for a 5,000 RMB fine.

Mark left after calling the movers and telling them I wished they would leave - he made this phone call in Chinese, standing in front of me, without ever saying what he was doing. I learned of the call when the movers called to confirm my wishes. That's when Mark saw me fly into hysterics.

I've got to tell you - I'm not one to fly into hysterics easily. My parents may disagree, but I can bet that none of the rest of you have seen me fall apart entirely. I am an under control gal, who does not collapse in tears and a squeaky voice. I had nothing left, and I didn't know what to do. I left, because I needed to pick up Sophia from school. Because of school, the movers could no longer wait. The stalemate passed, and I lost. I told the movers to leave.

But allow me to highlight the blessings here.

Blessing #1:
Note that paragraph 2 begins "Surrounded by friends this morning..." These are people I have known for less than 3 weeks, but who turned into a wonderful cheerleading squad this morning. Ladies called or texted to check in during the day, offered to take the girls after school, offered to host Lilly's birthday party this weekend, and just generally made me feel supported and part of a community.

Blessing #2:
Our ayi began work this morning. And although I had no work for her today, she could not have started at a better time. She took care of Annika so I could focus on the conversation at hand. She smiled and kept a light conversation whenever Mark left. And she chewed him out when she left. She's a keeper, and she brightened my morning considerably.j

Blessing #3:
The movers turned out to be wonderfully kind people. They caught on very quickly that I was being abused, and voiced their support in every phone conversation. I even received a very nice pep talk after I flew into hysterics on the phone. The truck sat waiting at the hotel for over an hour before I left to pick up Sophia from school. I spoke to Evan, the moving manager, as I walked to school. What would you like us to do, he asked. I have no idea, I replied. My voice rose higher, and I think I began rambling incoherently. I think we should take these things back to the warehouse today, and you can solve this later, he offered. I think that's a good idea, I answered. And then he said a bunch of nice things about human kindness and everything being alright in the end and not waiting so long to sign contracts next time. He cheered me enough to be able to face Sophia without crying.

Blessing #4:
Over the past few years, I have learned not to trust Uncle H-- in situations like these. They generally seem happy to accept all responsibility as ours, and pass on all costs by deducting them from Dave's paycheck. I felt hopeless this morning, quite sure they would not stand up for us. Quite to the contrary, when Dave explained the situation to his HR department they were incensed and immediately made some phone calls. The general manager of the hotel soon called Dave, and we are no longer responsible for the moving fee. In fact, he has offered some pretty sweet deals to entice us to stay. We do not expect they will be sweet enough to combat such a horrible morning, but the sentiment is both appropriate and appreciated.

Blessing #5:
I emailed a few ladies from Bible Study, as well as our parents. I meant to send a simple prayer request, but it turned into a bit of a rant. And I received a wonderful outpouring of prayer and support. Such kind words meant the world to me, and so much prayer has brought about the plethora of blessings listed here.

Blessings continue...
We spent the afternoon at the pool, surrounded by friends, the girls having so much fun that they never noticed my level of stress. We spent dinner at a friend's house, where the girls disappeared into their children's playrooms and I enjoyed adult conversation with the Mom and Dad. Uncle H-- will work as quickly as possible to get us out of this apartment and into something new. I will view a few things new tomorrow, and have received loads of good advice on where to look. The situation no longer feels hopeless or impossible. I do still feel powerless, but I also feel surrounded by very good people. I feel unsettled, but I also feel like I am joining a wonderful community.