Well, finally the opportunity arrived, and in an utterly bizarre manner. Her/my friend Samantha was moving, and though a strange conjunction of circumstances that I won't describe here, everyone departed for some time in the midst of moving. As much of the household possessions were on the lawn, I elected myself to remain and oversee their safety. It was a quiet, middle class neighborhood, but who knew what might happen?
If only I did.
After sitting about on the front step for a while, mindful of all that needed to be done, I set off to do some small amount of cleaning. Much of the furniture hadn't been moved in eighteen years, and I knew how to use a vacuum. I could do that, and still occasionally check the windows.
I proceeded in such a manner for a while, when on one glance out the window I noted a strange car in front of the neighbors house. With it's trunk open. Concerned, I shut off the vacuum and headed downstairs. Only to meet Carol, striding up the front walk, a delicate blossom drifting in a crystal bowl in her hand.
It turned out that she had mistaken the time, arriving some hours late, and quickly she and I set to a not quite monumental task. I was happy to have a woman for leadership, for though I was not unaccustomed to work, I was quite uncertain of the process of cleaning a house for departure. Amazingly, it turned out that vacuuming, and getting all of the ancient dustbunnies vanished, was a good step, meeting her approval.
So Carol and I fell to work in silent companionship. Yet at least on my part, it was a strained silence, for I was entirely aware of the strange conjunction of coincidences that led to Carol and I being alone, in an entire house, with absolutely no one else about. Undisturbed, and for what proved to be an extended period of time. There was absolutely no doubt in my mind that He had arranged this opportunity. I had...more than a little experience of the "too many coincidences" that God could arrange, to bring circumstances to where he wanted them.
But...how to use it?
My mind strained through reams of subjects of which I could talk with Carol about...yet none seemed quite so significant that God should feel a need to intercede. Obviously He intended something special...and I had no idea what it was!
And Carol...only made things worse.
The two of us were working in the master bedroom. She was cleaning baseboards, while I maneuvered the
"No, I think I'll go over the carpet out here once first," I replied. Both of us resumed our tasks.
Yet now to my strained confusion was now added, "Why did Carol want me to go into the closet?"
And...I swear that she said something about..."us".
The day proceeded, though the silence was even more strained. It wasn't as if Carol wasn't easy to talk to. I wanted to talk with her. I was also entirely aware of the great deal of cleaning yet to be done--Samantha was departing early the next morning. That had to be my frirst priority.
I did manage one small question, in the time allotted. Harboring some small doubt, after all of these years. Perhaps I had imagined the whole thing. Yet considering that particular combination of words, there was really only one way to know...
"Carol, I wanted to ask you something," I began. "I can't remember for sure, but I thought that you mentioned once that you were...Dutch?"
Carol seemed immediately pleased, even flattered that I had remembered something so personal about her, and immediately set off on a long explanation of her French and Dutch ancestry...
I am forced to admit that I didn't absorb large parts of it (I might even be wrong about the "French" portion), immediately dazed at the long delayed affirmation that I had not been deluding myself all of these years...
After another half hour or so, one of the neighbor's young sons stopped looking for his dad, who had departed with the rest of the crew. Carol, knowing the family, efficiently put him to work, and the window of opportunity waned.
And it was still some time before everyone else returned.
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