A new morning...a new idea...refreshed and ready to take on the day.
Dad was in his usual place again at the computer.
"Morning, Dad," I greeted him. He stood up and kissed me good morning followed by a hug.
"Mom actually did pretty good last night, " he told me. "She still got up every 2 hours, but she didn't seem to be in as much pain."
"That's great," I said. I went in to the kitchen to prepare some breakfast for us. Mom was already up and in the bathroom just finishing up getting herself ready for the day.
I scrambled up some eggs with some toast. Nothing much, just a light meal for us. Mom actually ate a nice plate of eggs and drank her water. My sister, Annie and her husband brought up a special water machine that is absolutely pure water through the means of special metal plates. It helps cancer patients and it is perfect for the healthy person as well.
"Hey there, I'm going to go in to town for a little bit and do some shopping before we you guys go to radiation today." I say as I clear the breakfast dishes from the table.
"Okay," Mom says, "but don't come back any sooner than you absolutely want to. I want you to enjoy yourself while you're here." She smiled at me. I smiled back. I knew exactly what I was going to do.
All night I had been dreaming about the ramp that I wanted to build in the garage. I built it, tore it apart, rebuilt it, measured, re-measured, saw the wood the supplies until I finally had a perfectly built project in my mind. In my dreams I had built the perfect ramp, now to just do it for real.
"Mom's been having a little trouble going poop lately." Dad says. "I don't know what to do for her, she needs to go."
"How long has it been?" I ask.
"About 3 days now." Mom rubs her stomach wrenching her face as she explains that she feel bloated and it hurts.
I get the morning dishes done and the kitchen cleaned up. The house looks good for now until I get back from town. I kiss Mom and Dad and tell them that I'll be back in a little while. They smile and wave me on to get to what I want to do.
I'm in town and head over to the local DIY store. As I walk across the parking lot, I say a small prayer. "Lord, lead me to the right supplies, even if it's in the scrap area. Nothing fancy, easy to put together. Thank you, Lord."
I walked in to the store to the wood area. The smell of fresh cut wood was very pleasing and I slowly walked up and down the isles. At first, I glanced at all of the huge planks of wood that would require cutting to the size I needed. I was beginning to feel a little down that maybe my plan wouldn't work. But I remembered my prayer and put my trust back in God.
After about the 3rd isle, I stopped and looked at a mismatch of wood in some bins. I knew that my ramp couldn't be any taller than 4 inches, so something about 3 inches in height to create the slope and a plank of wood an inch thick would be perfect.
I looked at the bins and shelves. There I saw two 16 inch by 32 inch pieces of plyboard. They were 3/4 inches thick. Could there be any 1 inch thick? I didn't see any at all. I picked up the two boards and held them for a moment, thinking. Then I saw a fence post that measured 3 inches by 3 inches by 33 inches. Wow, perfect. Even though it was 1 inch longer than I needed, I knew that I had the room to work with it. My ramp idea was coming together perfectly.
I thought about the wood for a moment and then remembered that it had been raining outside the past few days. That would make for wet shoes on the wood that would eventually make for a very slippery and dangerous situation. How do I make a non-skid surface on the ramp?
I looked around and didn't see anything quick and easy available. One clerk mentioned painting the ramp and sprinkling sand on it. That would work, but that would also mean that the ramp wouldn't be able to be used for at least 24 hours. That wasn't acceptable.
Just then, I remembered seeing some roofing shingles on the side of the house in the walkway at Mom and Dad's. It had that gritty surface that would be perfect for a non-skid surface. So my idea now shifted to getting the roofing nails so that I could put those shingles on there.
I found some great wood screws to attach everything together. My "dream" ramp was coming together quite nicely. I was very pleased with the supplies I had found and was thanking God for leading me right to where I needed to find everything.
I paid for the items and then headed for the grocery store. I still remembered Dad mentioning that Mom was having trouble going poop, so I had a remedy in mind.
I went grocery shopping for Milk of Magnesia, Metamucil crackers and peas for split pea soup. Mom needs fiber and lots of it to break things up.
When I got home, Mom was taking a nap in her bed. Dad was up doing little things around the house. I brought in the groceries and my supplies to make the ramp.
"What's that" Dad asked.
"I'm going to make a ramp for you and Mom," I told him.
"Oh wow, that's great, Jenni. Wow." Dad was smiling so big. He went in to the garage and began getting tools to help me put it together.
I showed him my supplies and we laid them out to see just how it would all come together. Perfect fit all the way around. I told Dad of my dream last night and my prayer today. He was so happy that things worked out perfectly and he thanked God for the help, too.
We began using the power drill to make small holes so that the screws would go in easier. Then we placed the screws and had the ramp made in no time. We kept looking in to the bedroom where Mom was sleeping and she hadn't made a move. Guess it's a good thing she couldn't hear too well since we were making so much noise.
I told Dad that I'd be right back. I returned in a couple of minutes with 3 of the roofing shingles from the side of the house.
"What are those for?" he asked.
"A non-skid surface, so that when it rains outside, your shoes won't get the wood wet and make it slippery."
"Good thinking," Dad said.
I got back down on the floor and began hammering the roofing nails in the neatly placed shingles on the ramp. Dad held everything in place until we had a beautiful and complete ramp.
We both looked at Mom still sleeping in the room. She looked so peaceful laying there. It's funny that she didn't hear a thing at all.
"Should we show her tonight?" I asked Dad.
"No, let's wait until tomorrow when we get ready to go to radiation. It will be a great birthday present for her."
What an awesome idea. Can we both hold a secret that long? I know that I was so excited that I couldn't wait for Mom to see it.
The evening went well and I made some split pea soup for all of us. I showed Mom the Milk of Magnesia and Metamucil crackers. She was so thankful for all that I had bought for her. She did all my remedies in hopes to feel some relief soon.
Our little 'secret' ramp stayed perfectly hidden in the garage for Mom to see tomorrow afternoon. I can't wait!
Off to bed with a feeling of a job well done. Thank you Lord for your help and guidance.
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