Just got back from three weeks vacation...to an empty basement! Normally you would not want to come home to this because it would mean that someone has cleaned out the place, but in this case it was a real help. Two nights ago we received a call from a couple of church people who were watching our house while we were away. They called to inform us that our basement was full of water (puddles, not a lake thankfully) and that they needed to get everything out of it. So around 10 people from the church spent their evening moving us out of the basement. Sure we have a bit of damaged furniture and we are going to be living in a bit of chaos for the next while, but what blew me away more than anything was that in our need, and helplessness of being five hours away from home, there were many who stepped up and showed their love to our family. They got wet as they moved carpet, they put up with the stink of a basement full of water, and they did what needed to be done.
You want to know a benefit of living in a small town and working in a small town church, here is one! People respond immediately in a time of need, you don't have to ask and beg, things just happen.
I do have one concern though...last year when we got back from vacation the locks to the church had been changed and this year our furniture was put into the garage from the basement...are they secretly trying to tell me something!
