Indian Summer is in full swing in Klamath Falls, Oregon.
High temperatures usually reach the mid-80’s with lows around 40 degrees. The
actual temperature can be deceiving because we are in the high desert, the suns
rays are very intense and the mid-80’s can feel much hotter than the reading on
the thermometer. The heat is intensified in buildings without air conditioning.
That is true for our church, which was built in 1955. The architects
of the facility used geothermal heat to keep it toasty in the winter, but did
not provide air conditioning for the hot summer months. The designers of the
building placed twelve one-foot-by-one-foot stained glass windows on each side
of the church to provide a slight breeze on a gusty day. There are also eight
strategically placed ceiling fans that get a little air moving.
This morning, I walked in the church and the stifling heat
hit me in the face. I heard one person say that he thought he’d just stand in
the entranceway where the outside air made it feel a little cooler. I
immediately started to look for a pew under a ceiling fan, but I looked up and noticed
that someone forgot to turn the fans on. Tim was able to remedy the situation
by finding someone who knew where the magic switch was located.
The church was filled to the brim. I went back of the church
and picked up one of the few remaining rattan hand fans that were bought to get
us through the dog days of the summer. Tim and I were on “Thompson Time,” meaning
late, so the praise team had already begun singing their first song. We needed to scurry to find a seat while
everyone was still standing.
I wasn’t paying much attention as I hurried by one of the congregation
members who had an unfortunate accident several weeks ago. He had climbed a
ladder to make some household repairs and had fallen off and broken several
bones. As I hurried past his wheelchair, I saw him fanning himself with a
church bulletin. I looked at the seat that I was hurrying to, and then back at
the box of almost depleted fans.
I handed my fan to his wife and she said, “Oh, don’t you
need it?” I said, “That’s fine, I can get another one.” Which I did and made it
to our seat, underneath the anticipation of the ceiling fan coming alive, which
it eventually did.
Today, I made the congregation a little more comfortable by helping
get the fans turned on and I helped a caregiver by giving her a fan to make her
ailing husband a little more comfortable.
In Giving,
Robin
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