Disappointing News

     For some time now I have not even allowed the thought to enter my head that we may have to bring our new baby home from the hospital to the house we have lived in for almost 4 1/2 years. Largely because it seems impossible to bring a newborn baby into this house. We are renting, and while the house suited our purposes just fine when we moved here, we have outgrown it, and the house is unfortunately deteriorating. The owners are wonderful people (missionaries to China) but it doesn't appear that they are able to perform much maintenance on their home and externally things are crumbling. In winter cold air blasts through the cracked windows with broken seals. We are consistently battling unwanted visitors of the bug and rodent variety and each of the rooms are barely large enough to turn around in.  Add in 2 adults, 1 Boxer dog, 1 Siamese cat and a baby and things are likely to be...unpleasant. 

    

     Well, we just learned this unpleasant possibility has become a reality. We won't be able to move prior to Junior's arrival. I did not receive this news well. In times like these I turn to God first, certainly, but I also remembered a book I had packed away (because I was so convinced we were moving soon I packed all my books up).

     It's funny how we as humans get our hearts set on something--and that's the only thing that will satisfy us. And what may not seem like such a big deal to some is everything to someone else. In my case, a decent home for my family and new baby. If I could take only one sentiment away from Kushner's message it would be the following:

"It may be that instead of giving us a friendly world that would never challenge us and therefore never make us strong, God gave us a world that would inevitably break our hearts, and compensated for that by planting in our souls the gift of resilience"--Harold S. Kushner

Well, I wasn't exactly feeling resilient at first. Once I got past the fit I had to throw, the yelling at nothing when nobody was around and the boo-hooing (that lasted the longest) I was finally able to find a little peace. Things have been so up in the air for so long but at least I now knew where Junior was initially going to sleep. So my gift of resilience came to me in the form of a can of paint and a plan.

This is what I have to transform into a temporary baby room for Junior's first couple of months here:

     What has never been a particularly attractive guest room (hello army green walls--what was I thinking??) has got to be turned into a temporary nursery. (You notice I keep saying temporary--our goal is 2 months after he gets here?--we're outta this joint!) Between the moving boxes and the baby gear we received at our first shower...there's not a whole lotta room in here. Keep in mind too--this is only baby gear from our first shower--the second one is in 2 weeks from now. Where we're going to put everything is a mystery only Sherlock could handle. 

So tomorrow Mr. Wonderful finishes painting the crib, and I start painting this room--a nice super-light taupe (it matches the inside of Peter Rabbit's ears). And I did learn something about myself from this disheartening experience--I'm somebody who needs a plan. Take my plan away from me and a whole lotta boo-hooing is going to ensue. Give me a new plan and some time to adjust and I might find some resilience buried somewhere down deep.

So, tell me: Are you usually able to roll with life's punches or do setbacks tend to stop you in your tracks? How do you handle life's disappointments?