Even in Texas, December gets cold, but we needed to keep our heating bill low. With my husband, James, at work, why keep the house warm just for me? I turned down the thermostat until the display read 66 degrees, then hit the \u201cHold\u201d button. With a click, the furnace shut off. I started sweeping the floors as the winter chill slowly began to seep into the house. I could practically hear my dad admonishing me\u2014\u201cTurn up the heat!\u201d<\/p>\n
It was December 6th<\/sup>, exactly one year since Dad had passed away. The memories were too painful to revisit, yet all day I\u2019d been replaying the 3:00 A.M. phone call that James and I got from Mom. News of Dad\u2019s stroke. His last few days in the hospital.<\/p>\n If only Dad could see me now, shivering to save a few bucks<\/em>, I thought. Dad was thrifty too, but he always poked fun at me for taking it too far. When I moved into my first apartment, a tiny studio that just barely fit my budget, Mom and Dad came for a visit. \u201cIsn\u2019t it a bit frosty in here?\u201d Dad asked, rubbing his arms. \u201cHow about we turn on some heat?\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t turn on the heater unless I have to,\u201d I said. \u201cI have to watch my money.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cHoney, it\u2019s freezing,\u201d Dad said. \u201cTurn up the heat!\u201d He whipped out his wallet and paid<\/em> me to turn the heat on. For years, Dad and I retold that story. I missed his…well, his warmth.<\/p>\n Brrr<\/em>. I shook off the cold, held a dustpan in place and swept up a dirt pile. A click echoed from the hallway. The thermostat? Within moments, the heat revved on.<\/p>\n I walked into the hall and eyed the thermostat. The black numbers stood out against the gray screen: Current temperature: 67 degrees. Heater\u2019s hold setting: 70.<\/p>\n Huh? Someone would have had to press the button to change the temperature. But I was the only one home! It had to be some glitch.<\/p>\n I told James what happened when he got back from work. \u201cThat sounds like just your father,” James said. \u201cKnowing him, I bet he won\u2019t let you keep this place cold.\u201d<\/p>\n I shot James a sidelong glance. Dad? The idea was too silly to entertain. We got ready for bed, and I lowered the thermostat to 66 again. We\u2019d be plenty warm beneath the blankets.<\/p>\n Walking to the bedroom, I heard another click. I turned back to the thermostat. The setting temperature had moved once again\u2014up to 70 degrees!<\/p>\n Now I was convinced. \u201cI hear you, Dad,\u201d I said, like he was right by my side. If he wanted to keep me warm on a difficult day like this, I\u2019d let him.<\/p>\n Nearly five years have passed since that day, and the thermostat? Hasn\u2019t had a glitch since.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Even in Texas, December gets cold, but we needed to keep our heating bill low. With my husband, James, at work, why keep the house warm just for me? I turned down the thermostat until the display read 66 degrees, then hit the \u201cHold\u201d button. With a click, the furnace shut off. I started sweeping […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":61,"featured_media":26649,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"ep_exclude_from_search":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[150],"tags":[76,151,72,169],"ppma_author":[1996],"class_list":["post-15908","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-gods-grace","tag-father","tag-mysterious-ways","tag-stories-of-faith","tag-winter"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n