Here is a summary of how my week has begun:

Yesterday after Chinese lessons, I came home to a very hot house and a not so cold refrigerator. Our electricity had been turned off because the bill had supposedly not been paid. Because our utilities are paid by the landlord, and I could not get in touch with him, we packed up our food and clothes, and headed to a friend’s house for the night. They fed us and took good care of us. The electricity issue turned out to be a misunderstanding with the electric company, and the electricity was restored that evening.

Today, Luke needed to go to the bank, but I offered to go for him since I needed to go to the grocery store anyway. Just before I left the house, I gave my phone a bath in the toilet….and almost flushed it. So, I headed out with Luke’s phone so I could at least email him if necessary. My phone replacement would be an issue for another day.

On the way to the bank, I witnessed a fender bender wreck. It was such a small wreck that I heard no crash and was not even aware that they hit each other until they pulled over as I was passing by. I felt obligated to go back and be their eyewitness, but there was one small problem. I had accidentally taken a road that went straight onto an unfamiliar highway. I had to exit onto another highway and then exit again to turn around and go back. I actually found my way back with no problems and arrived in time to see the police officer pull up to the scene of the accident. It was tempting not to stop because it required taking that same exit that caused the accidental detour in the first place!

After telling the police officer what I saw, I was then faced with the dilemma of doing the detour all over again. After asking the police officer how to get to the bank, I made it without a hitch, even though he gave very brief and vague directions.

When I got to the bank, I had a baby, a 2 year old, and no stroller – because I had taken it out to fit our cooler in the van the day before. The only bank still open was in a mall, so I stuffed my pockets with all the necessary stuff to make a deposit, put C in my baby front carrier, and let B walk. Fortunately, I had accidentally parked close to a bank I had never been to within a mall that I’ve only been to twice. After a walk through the mall at a 2 year old’s pace, carrying the weight of a 16 pound baby on my shoulders, I was glad to sit down in the van. And somehow the shopping trip at the grocery store seemed like a breeze!! I even got a good shopping cart! 🙂

As I was typing the events of the last 2 days, I realized that there were a lot of good parts to balance the hectic. So here is a list of the good things:

• I had not shopped to stock our fridge yet.
• We had good friends with a big freezer to take us in.
• The electricity issue was a mistake.
• I did not flush the phone.
• I am able to email from my phone.
• I found my way back from my accidental detour (twice).
• We had money to deposit into the bank.
• I had my baby carrier with me.
• I parked close to a bank.
• I made it home from the mall without getting lost.
• I did not have to call Luke a single time for directions!

Now that I see how well the good parts of the day balanced the bad, I think I am prepared to take on tomorrow! God is good, isn’t He?