No happy ending--yet

Warning: there's no happy ending to this story. Maybe there will be eventually. Or maybe we will just chalk it up to "one of those things that happen." The explanation we use when things don't make sense.

Yesterday I had to bring Max to his light therapy (therapy that is used to treat psoriasis) and on the way in, the dr called. I left Luke in the car (his own choice) and had Anna and Henry come in with me. I had agreed to wait downstairs in the lobby while Max practiced doing his therapy on his own. He wanted to do this and any time he wants to practice some independence, I'm all for it (within reason, of course.) So while I'm on the phone talking to the doctor, we were downstairs waiting for Max. It took about ten minutes for him to finish (it is a super short treatment) so we left. Once we got in the car, I couldn't find my keys. I looked in my purse, I dumped my purse, asked Luke if he had the keys (he didn't) and then went in the drs office to see if I left them in the lobby, which I didn't. It was like they disappeared into thin air.

Long story short, we were there for an hour looking for my keys. Four kids and two dogs (why do we always bring the dogs everywhere??) I looked on the walkway up to the office, in the parking lot, in the car, under the car, in the grass and the rock pile. I searched the building over and over, looked in the lost and found and went over to the hospitals lost and found (I was told to give it a try in case someone dropped it off over there). I have no idea how keys could disappear in such a short time.

It was frustrating, that's for sure. Everything was frustrating. Anna and Henry kept leaving the car without permission and then I would have to stop my search to look for them. Every time someone opened the doors, the dogs would try to jump out. I couldn't leave the kids in the car for long periods of time because we only had one window open (thankfully I at least had one opened) and without the keys, we couldn't open more. Even the wind was working against me, it tried to blow the doors shut as I was looking under the seats, or got my hair in my face when I was looking under the car.

And on top of all that, I had to pick up Lucy from rehearsal (she is part of the crew) and had no way of getting her. I had to call Dennis for help and of course, he wasn't happy about the situation and having to leave work early. But what can you do??

He stayed and looked while I brought the kids home and then went to get Lucy. I came back to get Dennis and the dogs (poor dogs, stuck in the car for two hours with no way to get out since we didn't have leashes) and he still hadn't found them.

I told Lucy on the way over to get Dennis, that the devil took the keys. Of course, she thought that was funny. She thought I was kidding. But really I wasn't. I've had things disappear on me before, literally just vanish and then later, show up in the oddest places that make no sense. And when things disappear, everyone gets upset.

Maybe I'm wrong, I don't know. But so much chaos and discord comes about when these things happen.

We were forced to leave the van in the parking lot, not really sure if we would find it again in the morning or if it would towed away. I wanted to leave a note for the security guard about what happened so he might take pity on us, but Dennis didn't think it would do much good.

In the meantime, the keys are still missing. The frustrating thing about this is that another copy can't be made. It was made with a computer chip inside. Why does everything have to be so technical these days?!?! Even keys!

So Dennis is calling the dealership to see if another can be made. For whatever reason he has, he doesn't think it is possible. He does tend to be a half-glass empty sort of person, and I'm hoping that this is the case. I mean, it's keys for crying out loud.

If another copy can be made, we will have to get the van towed to the dealership, where they can get the correct computer chip set directly to the car. If it's at the impound, we will have to pay more money to get it out.

And worst case scenario, if we can't get another copy for the key, we will have to sell the van for scraps. Again, Dennis's grim prediction which I hope is just due to his half-glass empty perspective.

There was a lot of tension in the air last night. I was upset for many different reasons; Dennis was upset with just one. For me, it was the entire frustrating situation, the lack of obedience from the kids, and the frustration I felt from Dennis. But more than anything, it's that I was the one that lost the keys. I'm the one that has caused all these problems. It is just hard to be the one responsible for all of this.

And of course, we prayed to find the keys. But they weren't found. It's times like this that I can't help questioning God why. Why wouldn't he let us find them? Why let us go through so much trouble and get angry and upset? It's not like I'm asking a cure for cancer. I just want to find my keys.

But maybe Lucy said it best when she sounded a little older than her 12 years when she prayed in her prayers last night, that "you will help us figure out what to do, and all we need to do is trust you."

Sort of humbling to hear your kid be the voice of reason.

So I'm off to cram in whoever I can in the truck (I will be forced to leave the older kids behind) to see if the van is still there or if anyone has turned in some keys. Pray that they will. And if they don't show up, pray that we will be patient with each other in moments that we have no control over.