Five men and a ceiling fan

I was crazy about my daddy - and sometimes he drove me crazy.

Try as I did, I never could convince him that I do not have to rely on a man to help me with projects that are traditionally male-oriented.  I have a tool box, know what to do with a paint brush and can usually tell what might be wrong when something sounds unusual in my car. That last one is a bit of a stretch.

Daddy was not unlike most men of his generation.  He just thought there were things I shouldn't do.  We had a running discussion - mostly on what I shouldn't do  - because to me he was saying they were things I couldn't do.  And I never stopped wanting to prove to him that I could do anything I set my mind to.

It would really get me when he implied that I was not capable of the task at hand.  It made me think he thought I was weak. 


When Rich Suhey died, it got worse.  Now not only was I not supposed to do things because I am a female.  I was a "little widow woman" who needed the help of a man.

Please don't misunderstand me.  It's not that I don't like a little attention.  If I am being truly honest, my problem is that I don't like to wait on a little attention.

That said - I can also say that I know what the Bible says about widows and orphans (James 1:27) but I mean really...I usually can do what I might need a man to do.

Several months ago as I was changing a burned out bulb in the ceiling fan/light that hangs over my desk, there was a pop and then there was nothing - no fan, no light.  I kept thinking I was going to get it fixed.  It just never was a priority. 

Until the warm days of Spring became the hot days of Summer.  And as much time as I spend at a computer - I needed the light.

"Let's ask the MUGS to do it," my mother suggested.  The MUGS are Men Under God's Service at Mandarin Presbyterian Church where she worships.  They love her there and are always offering to help with anything she might need.

I kept saying no.  Until finally, I told her to go for it.

The day that they were coming arrived.  I had spent the early hours of the day working in my garden.  I planned to take a shower, etc before they were due (this tells you I'm okay with being a female, right?).  However, Doug and Rob arrived to find a dirt-splattered, no make-up or hair fixed Paula.

Oh well.  An additional need was that the sprinkler system didn't seem to be running exactly as it should - Could they take a look at it? They would be happy to but suggested addressing the electrical issue first.  That would be simple.

The two men had worked for over an hour when my doorbell rang.  Pat and Phil had come to their rescue.  In a few minutes, Randy, the chair person of MUGS arrived.

I told them it was rare for me to have one man in my office.  It was pretty cool to have five.

Another hour.  They really were perplexed.  I was ready to go purchase a new ceiling fan.  Pat was not going to let this go.  He knew it could be fixed.

Then one of them pulled a little black cover from the housing of the apparatus.  A light bulb went off in my head.

Does the fact that the ceiling fan has a remote have anything to do with this?

"Everything to do with this," someone said.

I felt like one of those women who calls the washing machine repairman before checking to see if all the cords are plugged in.

Within minutes the ceiling fan was oscillating and the office was filled with light.

In all of our defense, the original problem had nothing to do with the remote.  However, when their electrical tester was showing there was power and the light was still not working, that's when the fact that there was a remote entered into the equation.

Almost three hours had passed.  Five men had joined together to fix a ceiling fan.  And the strangest thing to me was that they all acted like they were having a good time. Their actions brought to mind a  Bible verse. "Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for men," (Colossians 3:23).

What a blessing these men, who really love my mother, were to me!

As I watched them leave,  I noticed they were all smiling. Well,  maybe they were laughing.  Maybe they thought I really was like the lady who didn't check the plug before calling the repairman - maybe they were thinking the same thing my daddy might have been saying -- it's just because she's a girl.  But I tell you what I think...

What else needs fixing around here?