ANGELS WE HAVE HEARD ON HIGH

We have always believed in angels. No, not necessarily those creatures in white robes, wings and a halo, playing a harp, although we don't discount the possibility. We believe angels are scooting around where we don't expect them, looking over our shoulders, and guiding our judgment in many areas. We also believe they show up in human form at just the right time.

An example: on February 4, the day I joined the SKP Saguaro Board of Directors, the whole Board went out to lunch. After the meal, the Board President's husband suddenly collapsed. At least three or four angels appeared, in the form of Board members or spouses who were retired nurses and knew exactly what to do. Coincidence? They were there anyway when it happened? Perhaps.

Jim and Sandie Dixon have been stalled in Billings, Montana, with one after another service problem with their rig. Two friends were recently hospitalized; Jim and Sandie took the opportunity to visit them in the hospital. To me, that's angels at work. They didn't have to do that; lots of folks consider hospitals depressing places and would never think of visiting people who are sick.

We had our own angels here Saturday evening. Daughter Deb and her pal Albert were visiting for dinner and Mexican Train.

We had eaten outside at the picnic table (right next to the grill where I had prepared a dinner deluxe!).

Suzy was feeling tired, so she used her Coach Lift chair to go back inside, rather than taking the steps. That Coach Lift has been a real blessing for her. She would usually rather struggle her way up the steps on her own steam than have to rely on a mechanical device -- most of the time. This time she took advantage of the lift.

Suzy' first Coach Lift ride, February 4, 2010.

Deb, Albert and I had come in first; Suzy got herself seat-belted into the lift. Deb and Albert were watching the process from the living room couch, when all of a sudden, in Deb's words, "Hell broke loose!" Something gave way in the structure of the lift, and Suzy suddenly tipped forward and started yelling; she was beginning to pitch over the edge of the chair, held in position only by the seatbelt. Deb and Albert, in Suzy's words, "flew out the door." Me? I was in the kitchen area involved in something and didn't even hear the hubbub.

Once I realized something was wrong, I rushed to the door and saw "Mr. Smith" (you remember him as the man who moved his site three times to accommodate his family gathering) and two of the park's housekeeping staff, along with Deb and Albert, cradling and comforting Suzy as someone (I don't know who) was pushing buttons to lower the damaged carrier to ground level. I was unable to even get out the door with the crowd pressing in, and felt helpless. All I could do was look those five angels in the eye and mouth my "thank yous." Suzy was on the verge of hysteria, but one of the housekeepers continued in soothing tones to provide comfort.

Once down and stable, Suzy was helped up the stairs, and we moved on to a rousing game of Mexican Train (Deb won that game, a fitting victory for our #1 angel!).

Sunday was a day of mild discomfort for Suzy, but by evening she was hurting from all the physical trauma. Fortunately she has no psychological effect other than being terrified of that Coach Lift! I went out today and took pictures to demonstrate what seems to be the problem. As you can see, there is a significant frontwards and sideways slope to the chair's seat.

This picture shows the divergence that should not be there, between the two parts of the support arm.

Those two sticks should be parallel.

We will be in touch with the manufacturer of the Coach Lift, and we expect they will make things physically right with the equipment. That's all we want, make that right so we can go on and continue to enjoy ... Our Life on Wheels.

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We mentioned Mr. Smith. After we posted about Mr. Smith's odyssey to find the best accommodations for his family group, some readers asked to see a picture of the final setup. Here it is: one motorhome with awning extended. one dining pavilion, and two family tents. Those guys seem happy, the kids aren't  yelling and screaming and tearing around, so we can't complain. Especially when "Mr. Smith" turned out to be an angel in human form!

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