What do you do when someone you love dies?
Well, you cry - that's a given. You pray for sure. You grieve whether you want to or not. But I found that I needed something to do at night after my nine-month-old baby was safely tucked into bed. My husband wasn't there anymore at day or night. He was in Heaven enjoying his new home that Jesus had built for him.
Nights were the hardest. So, I took on a project - a big project. I went to an unfinished furniture store and bought a solid oak chest of drawers and a new three paneled headboard for my bed. With my new bedroom pieces delivered to my garage, I began to work. Ever so carefully, like I had learned in various house renovation projects that my husband and I had worked on together, I grasped a piece of fine grit sandpaper in my hand and began to prepare the oak.
Night after night, I would put my infant son to bed and night after night I would descend the steps to my family room, open the door to the garage and work on my new furniture. After using a tack cloth to clean the newly sanded wood, I opened a can of stain with a polyurethane mix. The directions said to use a soft rag to wipe the color onto the wood. I dipped my cloth into the gel-like substance and slowly smoothed the stain onto the oak. A pleasant color appeared when combined with the red oak - warm and rich, like the color of honey.
I put my former bedroom set in storage and later gave it to my sister for a wedding present. With my new bedroom set in place, I felt a sense of satisfaction and relief. The project was good for my body and my mind. It was symbol of a new start - not one that I had wanted or planned, but one that I had no choice but to endure.
I am glad that God gives us opportunities to ease our pain when we are hurting. Using my hands to accomplish something new was just one way for that to happen. I pray that you too will find release and a new sense of purpose as you journey the road of grief. May the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ grant you His peace today and I pray His blessings on any new projects that you might endeavor to do.
In Jesus' love,
Susan
