A Glorious Day (Part 2)

This is a view of the main living area of my condo.

After all names were collected of those who were to be a part of the lottery drawing, they were placed in one of those wire enclosed tumbler type of things. Helen Schiller, Alderman of the 46th ward and the original founder of the program, was on hand to draw the names from the wire basket. Helen Schiller and I knew each other because I had been at two previous lotteries and also she was personal friends with my dear friend Marguerite. We had met at Marguerite's retirement party.

Before the names are drawn from the tumbler it  is announced which particular property is being drawn and it continues until all properties have been awarded. The first name drawn was going to be awarded that large property that included the parking space, the property that I had wanted so badly. I do not remember this as distinctly as Bill does, perhaps because I was so enthralled in the excitement of the whole thing, but Bill told me later that when Helen pulled the first name out, a smile crossed her face.

My name was the very first name drawn and it was for the property I had worked so diligently at least mentally and spiritually to achieve. I could not believe my ears. It was all I could do to hold back my tears. This had really happened, I was physically shaking from the shock of it and was awestruck with amazement. I knew this was going to happen and yet when it did, I was overwhelmed.

Let me explain this did not mean I was given the property, it meant I had this wonderful opportunity to purchase this beautiful condo at a greatly reduced price. This meant I could actually purchase a place of my own after over thirty years of paying rent!

The next few months were a struggle to find financing. I did not have great credit, it was average, and I had worked for myself for the past twelve years, my income was somewhat of an issue. After having been turned down for financing several times, I was somewhat discouraged, but determined to find a way to buy this property. Bill was very encouraging, he said remember the smile that crossed Helen's face and always remember of all the people who were at that lottery, God chose you first. Six years later I still remember that and I always will.

After finally finding a bank and a loan officer, named Cheryl Weismith, it looked as if things were finally on their way to completion. Remember this was December 2007, within six months of my purchase the entire real estate market collapsed and it is still recovering to this day. I remember Cheryl was very insistent about the "drop dead" date of December 4. I think she knew the market was on the brink of collapse and if I did not get financing by that date, there was a possibility it would never happen.

As I stated at the being of this two part blog post, there were so many things that went so rightly with such impeccable timing it is beyond coincidence, it was divine intervention. Let me explain further.

Six months after moving into my elevator building with an attached and enclosed garage, I lost my first leg. As time progressed I began to realize just how perfectly suited this condo was for the amputee I had become. There are no stairs for me to climb either into or out of my condo unit or into or out of the garage, perfect for someone in a wheelchair. I had only lived in one other elevator building in my entire life and that was 25 years earlier, every place I had ever lived since was always on the second or third floor of a walk up building.

My condo also has in unit laundry facilities, something I had never had before ever, something I desperately needed after having become an amputee. When my name was drawn at that lottery I had no idea what was going ensue in just a few months. I have since come to realize just how perfect the timing was for was about to happen to me.

I feel that it was my destiny to become an amputee, that there is a reason this happened, an inevitable fate of sorts. I feel and I will always feel that this condo was chosen for me by God as a place that despite the hardships that losing not only one leg both legs, I have a comfortable, beautiful, and well suited place to live. If you look at all that happened in order for this to take place with such perfect timing it has to be more than coincidence.

Maybe I should have called this two part blog post, " two glorious days"  because it was glorious the day my name was drawn and it was glorious the day I moved in. I made a promise to God before my name was drawn that I would never take this place for granted and I would thank him for him for it everyday.

Six years later I have kept my promise and there is not one day that goes by that I am not grateful for the blessing of my home. Thanks be to God.