When we all still lived in Florida I was a contractor and Grandma was, for the last 5 years before we moved, a cop. Your mom and Uncle Justin were with us pretty much full time which was exactly what we wanted. Grandma was the stable one even though I had a good thing going at a 5 star Resort on St. Pete Beach called “Trade Winds” towards the end of our time in Florida. By then we had made several trips to Colorado for vacations two weeks at a time. Then the Twin Towers in New York were hit and fell. Within two weeks I had been layed off from the Resort because no one was traveling anywhere much less down to St. Pete Beach Florida. So in an effort to control losses to the Resort a number of employees were let go. But the Lord was on the job and I was able to return back to the Resort as a contractor. It was what I had been doing before I got a permanent (well….semi-permanent) position as their in-house stone installer. On September 12th, the next day, multitudes of people, myself included, started to live day to day. Being a contractor while it has freedom that is particular to the function there is the omnipresent detail of “where is my next job coming from”. Everything tied to living and being in Florida had long before lost it’s appeal to me. The Vellenga family had first gone to Florida from Michigan in 1957 for a Winter visit only to return to MI in the following Spring. That format continued to happen until Dad sold the farm in 71′. My first year going to school in St. Pete was 3rd grade and roughly three months later President Kennedy was assassinated in office. For a long time thereafter we again lived day to day till normalcy returned. I grew to hate Florida….the Summer lasted right through Winter for the most part. Had to mow the lawn eleven months a year….humidity was ever-present along with the mold and mildew and all the bugs associated with a humid/hot/moist place. Grandma and I would live to work for 50 weeks a year so that we could take 2 weeks out West. So for that time it was day to day labor and tolerance so that we could let our hair down where we really wanted to be. When the opportunity to have a job in Denver came to light I jumped at the chance and Grandma did too. Six months after the Towers fell I was once again a contractor and for 5 months before I returned to Florida to get Grandma I lived day to day. Ask your mom about the drive that she and I made together when I first came out here, she was 15.
Since my arrival out here till now I have had only two jobs with two Companies. And in an earlier love note to you Avery I detailed my new position being back on my own now 8 months ago. I am once again living day to day while Grandma is also once again the stable one in this family. Yesterday you and your mom and us went to church and followed up with Chili’s so that you could have your new favorite meal….”chips and Salsa”… at this point in my life I am grateful for the small things like when you let me carry you into church and you wanted to hold my hand while leaving Chili’s walking to your car. And as an additional note we found .26 cents on the floor under our seat so the Lord is still sending me love notes as well. The Lord has me right where He wants me for now and the consequence of that is my total dependence on Him as I can only live day to day once again. In all fairness Grandma doesn’t like it very much, and because I am a lot older than when I did it the last time I will confess to you that it makes me a bit uncomfortable at times as well….but…I will wait upon the One who loves us all. The Lord has never let me down and by writing this note to you, you will at some point in your life be able to say the same thing. At some point soon I will be able to update my current condition to what the Lord will do or have done for me and my day to day living…..
anythingyoutolerate 