House Showing = Panic Time

Our family, as most of you know, is trying to sell our house right now. We've been trying to sell it for quite a while, so we try to get every house showing we can, and get really excited when one does happen, right? Well, sort of, at least we try to get house showings, but unless you're talking of running around like chickens with your head cut off kind of excitement, then no, we don't get excited. Now, this probably sounds strange, contradictory, and sort of stupid, so I will give an example of what I am talking about.

It is 9:30 on a Monday morning in the Sauvé house. Everything is about as calm as it ever gets around here (which isn't very calm). Mom and the four younger kids are doing Bible History together, Dad has run off to the store, and the older three girls are doing various activities around the house. Then the phone rings. Charity picks it up and hands it to Mom. Now all the kids start the Game: "Figure out who mom is talking to and what she is talking about" just by hearing and watching her side of the conversation.

Mom: "Oh, hi Donna" Kids (thinking) Mrs. Rinn or Mrs. Anderegg, no that's Debbie.
Then John cheats, "Charity who is it?"
"Real Estate Unlimited," (our real estate agency) she answers.
"Hey maybe they got an offer on the house," Josh says. (That's an old line.)
Back to mom's conversation. Her face suddenly turns blank.
Josh: "It's an offer on the house, I know it!"
Mom: "Uh sure, yeah, sure, thank you, bye."
Mom hangs up, turns to everyone's expectant faces, and delivers the punch line. "They want to show the house at 10:30."
John: (always asking the unneeded questions) "And you said…?"
Mom: "Yes".
Now everyone panics, "But that's in an hour", "This place is a mess", "They can't do this to us", "If we only have an hour than let's get going." The last line comes from always practical Grace, and with that everyone scatters.

In a few minutes everything is pretty much under control and everyone is working. The peace remains until the people arrive fifteen minutes ahead of time. Now real pandemonium breaks forth! Josiah runs around the house shouting, "The people are here! The people are here!" John and Josh quickly shove the remaining mess in their room under their beds and pull the blankets far down to cover it. Faith starts wishing she could just snap her fingers like Mary Poppins to make her books go on the shelf. Downstairs as most of the kids are grabbing their coats and the viewers are coming up the walk, Mom shoves the bread dough into the oven and dumps all other misplaced items into a drawer or cupboard to be sought for later. Yet somehow, through all the craziness, we manage to slip out of the side door with the dog just before the people come through the front, and another showing comes off without the viewers ever knowing of the panic they have caused.

So now do you understand how a showing at our house equals panic time? Yet, that evening in family devotions, Dad and everyone thanked God (and meant it) for bringing people to view the house and asked for more. Ah well, the mysteries of life.