Joy in the Unexpected

Many things have happened over
the past couple of days.
All could be considered
good or bad
depending on your outlook
on the circumstances.

Yesterday
I dropped my phone in a sink full
of soapy water.
This was the first time
I've ever done anything like that.
Ever.
And it makes me so sad.
Because it's one of the only ways
that I'm able to communicate with my dad.
I haven't heard his voice in a couple of days,
nor have I heard my mom's.
And it's so very hard.
Especially in light of everything
that's going on back home right now.

Yesterday my dad went in the the hospital
because his chest was hurting
and he was having a very hard time breathing.
So they took a chest x-ray,
and he had a ton of fluid in his chest.
So today he went in and had over a liter
of fluid drained out of his chest.

So.
It's been hard knowing that all this is happening
and not having a way to communicate
easily with them.
I mean, we've sorta been exchanging emails,
but there's nothing like calling and chatting,
even if it's only for a couple of minutes.

But not having my phone has been
teaching me to not be as dependent
on it.
A lot of things in my life
depend on my phone.
I use the calendar a lot to keep
track of events in my life.
I use the alarms to wake me up
and keep me on schedule.
But.
Those things have to change right now.
And I'm learning to be flexible.

Anyway,
a lot of other things have probably
happened within the past few days.
But at the moment,
I can't really remember.
What I do know is that there is joy
to be found even in these things.
The Lord is still faithful.
He is the source of my joy.
And even though things may not be
the way I thought they would be,
God is using these situations
to shape me more into His image.
They are for His glory.

Blessings.