Learning A New Lesson
If I were to title this entry, it would be something like, “One is never too old to learn a new lesson.” Some time ago, I was invited to a dinner party with a friend and her mother-in-law. When I went to the car in the early evening to leave, I noticed water on the garage floor. It has been a warm day; thus I assumed the water was condensing from the air-conditioner in my car. When I arrived home, I found a lot more water on the garage floor. Suspecting now that some trouble was brewing, I walked to the water heater that sits in the back of my garage, only to see water running out at the bottom of the appliance. Now I knew I was in trouble.
I called our son. He came over and turned off the water and gas that feed into the heater and said, “Mom, this thing has to be drained. We can’t move it with forty gallons of water in it. I’ll be back tomorrow. We’ll drain it and then I’ll go with you to buy a new heater.”
Now the cement floor of my garage had layers of dirt, salt, leaves and other debris that a car can bring into a garage during the winter. I backed the car out and we let the water, still slightly warm, run over the floor, soaking and softening all the accumulated dirt; together we swept the floor with a little help from a garden hose. By the time the heater had emptied, the garage floor and the driveway were clean of all the winter collection. Then, our son not only helped me buy the new heater, he made arrangements for me to get it to my home and then he took a whole day out of his life to install it. As I write, I have hot water.
This experience has taught me three lessons. First, many times it is possible to wrestle a blessing out of something that can be extremely upsetting. My garage floor was a real mess. If the water heater had not given way, my garage floor would probably still be a mess. But the draining water gave my son and me an opportunity to use the negative experience in a positive way. Now, I not only have a new water heater, I have a clean garage floor.
Two, not having any hot water for a while made me realize how much I take having hot water for granted. Dirty dishes and dirty clothes began to pile up. I couldn’t shower, only wash my faced with water I had to heat before using. Thus, it occurred to me that perhaps I take too much in life for granted. I must be more aware of this and be thankful for the many appliances that make life a bit easier to get through the day.
Third, I heard a mother of grown children say, just recently, how much she enjoyed her children when they were between the ages of eight to ten. But then she had to admit, “I think the best ages are now when they are adults.” I have to agree. I would not have hot water today if our son had not taken charge of the whole situation. He turned off everything, avoiding a fire, helped me drain the old heater, allowed me to use the shower at his home, helped to buy a good heater, get it to my home and then install. Adult children can be a wonderful example of unconditional, respectful love. I now have a clean garage floor and a water heater to prove it.