Today was a lot like most days.
But it was also a bit different.
Chad changed careers, so to speak.
After picking our youngest daughter up from preschool, Chad and I ventured to his office.
He cleaned out his cubicle and turned in his ID badge.
We had been discussing it for a while, and he decided he had put it off long enough.
A few friends helped him box up everything from his career in civil engineering.
Those seven canary-yellow boxes now reside in our mudroom, stacked half-way up the wall.
And there they will sit until we locate the determination to find a permanent location for their contents.
Books. Calculators. Rulers. (Which I’m sure all have fancier professional names than that…)
We spoke to a few of Chad’s co-workers and I entertained our daughter while Chad’s boxed-up career was loaded into the back of our van.
Was it hard?
Absolutely.
Chad worked so hard and genuinely enjoyed going to work before he was diagnosed.
He was always thinking of ways to do his job more effectively and help others do the same.
He studied and sacrificed so much to complete his Master’s Degree and Professional Engineering license.
My neighbor & I were talking yesterday afternoon, and he said something that validated a topic I’d been pondering lately.
He said, “You know, Skye, sometimes bad things happen. But who’s to say that it’s not really a good thing? God doesn’t make mistakes….Chad no longer works. But that means he’s home with you and the girls.”
And it’s absolutely true.
God does not make mistakes.
He makes statements.
And sometimes we struggle to determine the meaning behind it all.
I know what God wanted to share with us this time:
This is not the end of his career.
It’s the beginning of a new one.
He is with US.
He’s a Full Time, Stay-at-Home Dad.
And a Full Time, Stay-at-Home Husband.
We’ll have more memories.
We’ll have more laughs.
We’ll just have…Chad.
We’ll have more time.
More time together.
I just hope Chad doesn’t expect me to pay him.
I forgot to mention it was a non-paid position when he accepted my offer.
oh my goodness…what an absolutely beautiful post. Your love for your husband is just jumping through my screen. Today must have been terribly difficult for you and your husband. It is however wonderful how you can see the positives in this change of career or perhaps better said as an early retirement from working. I agree, God does watch over us even at times when we dont feel it. There are signs sometimes that he send us and he draws them to us for a reason. Sometimes we just have to keep looking and being hopeful. your words were very powerful and beautifully written. thank you so much for sharing. Your a very special person!!
Thank you, Skye. Thank you so much for this post. Thank you.
Skye,
Thank you for sharing. You are very strong; your husband is fortunate to have such wonderful support. Your neighbor is right, God does not make mistakes; sometimes for us His reasoning can seem confusing. We need to rest in His omniscient ways, a lesson I have to learn repeatedly. Thank you for your words about focussing on new memories. You and your family are in our thoughts and prayers.
Skye,
Thank you for sharing and for this beautiful post! It must have been a very difficult day for you, and yet you chose to see the postitive and be thankful. I think trying to be thankful even in very difficult times is truly the key to joy. That is so difficult sometimes though, isn’t it?
God is not the source of heartache, but He does allow it sometimes. We need to trust that good will come from it, and rest in Him. That is a lesson we all have to learn daily. I certainly do. Once again thanks for your beautiful post! It was an encouragement to me and to many others I suspect. In spite of Chad’s disease I hope you experience many joy-filled moments with him being a full-time husband.