Chapter 19 "Dancing with the Father"

May excitedly strapped her mosquito repellent, Tylenol PM, towel filled bag on her back. It was move in day. As she and Red approached the rickshaw that would bring them to the house May would stay at for the next two months, she heard her phone ring. She answered and the “yes, move in” turned into a “no, wait”. She learned a long time ago, His timing was always better then hers but, she could not help her eyes from watering and her heart from feeling let down. After an encouraging hug from Red and the comment that made her giggle, “TIA…this is Africa”, May begrudgingly got into the rickshaw and went to The Smith’s house to tutor their children rather then to move in with a family.

The following days, as she rested her head on her soft feather filled pillow in the blue room, many insights were exposed about the previous week. The week prior to the inevitable phone call, her dance with the Father had drifted into nothing more then a monotonous shuffle. A hint of homesickness mixed with a dash of “BSDs” (bad single days, as her friends referred to them), added to an overuse of the internet was multiplied by the lack of sleep she had gotten because of her nervousness about the future. The other side of the equation showed, a tired “wanna-be” servant who let the world’s music clash with the Father’s.

May was thankful, even when she let the dance dwindle, He kept the pace. She was thankful, when she stepped on his feet and messed up the rhythm, His mercy and grace kept their hands intertwined. She was thankful that He was her partner in this waltz because she knew He would not let it end, even when she was distracted by others spinning around them. She was thankful for the “no” and “wait” answers because they taught her to keep her eye’s locked on His, the leader of the dance who knows the next step. The more she thought about it, the more grateful she became. She knew she used to be like many of the people she encountered every day, deafened to the music and completely unaware of the dance that was in front of them. She was all the more appreciative that she was subject to the Father’s lead and she waited patiently on His next step.