The drive home was a rough one as working in the middle of the night through the day wasn’t my normal routine. As I pulled in my drive, the crunch of the gravel released all of my muscles as I knew I was finally home. Tiredness set in my bones. It wasn’t tiredness from one day’s work. It was life tired. The kind of tired that comes from going, going, going without stopping.
I struggled to gather all of my belongings from the car and I knew I had a morning of cleaning ahead of me. Sybil was already there cleaning, and I hated the thought of her cleaning while I should be helping her.
I stepped in my house to the fresh smell of bleach and pinesol. I literally bowed my head and cried. I heard the sound of music playing and as I gravitated toward it, I heard her. Singing “Your forgiveness Is like sweet, sweet honey on my lips..” I stepped in the kitchen where Sybil looked up and giggled and quickly switched off the music.
“ I didn’t even hear you step in honey. You tired?”
Normally I would stand and talk…normally we had church right along while cleaning. This day, I was honestly just too tired. I was so thankful she was there. I was so glad that she came and helped me.
We talked for a few minutes before I excused myself to get a quick shower. When I came out of the shower, I thought to myself that I needed to sit for just a minute. Two hours later I was awoke by Sybil whispering, “honey, you have people coming to the shop in 30 minutes. You probably need to get up. I am almost finished. Do you want me to set an alarm in case you fall back asleep?”
First, I was embarrassed that I slept while she cleaned my house. I apologized all over myself. She said, “oh stop. Honey, if you didn’t need my help I wouldn’t be here. You needed to rest.”
Sybil will never ever know how much I appreciated her help over the last year. She helped me keep my sanity. She took care of things I never even asked her to. She lended an ear when I needed one. She ALWAYS found a way to praise the Lord. She was my biggest fan and never hesitated to tell people how she loved me and loved my work. She never wanted to take a dime for helping me so I would force her. Her presence in my home was one of light. She is going to be missed so much. No matter how many times I told her how much I loved and appreciated her or I thanked her, it never seemed like enough. I am so thankful for this last year.
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