A Tale of Two Drywall Deliveries

At some point in May or June, we had a drywall delivery:  10 sheets of drywall, delivered to our doorstep, which we then had to get inside.  If you've never moved drywall, you might make the mistake of thinking that it's essentially talc and chalk, held together between paper, so how heavy could it be?

Not only is a sheet of drywall heavy, but its unwieldy.  It's bendy enough to be tough to pick up by oneself, if one is an average person, but not bendy enough to be flexible where one would like it to be.  And did I mention that it's heavy?  We didn't want to take much in the way of a rest break because it's the mountains, and it could rain at any moment.  Rain and drywall do not mix.

At that first drywall delivery, I thought I could do it, be a good helper, but I was surprised by how hard it was, how I always felt the drywall was about to slid out of my grasp.  No matter how I grabbed it, some body part of mine was in the way, my head or hip or arm.  But we got it into the house before the rain came.

Yesterday we had our second drywall delivery.  I dreaded it a bit, after the last time.  But this time, I was able to grab, carry, and walk.  Hurrah!

I puzzled over what the difference could be.  I have not been doing strength training.  I have not lost weight in the way that makes it easier to carry bulky objects.  I do wonder if maybe my grip has improved.  Once again, I'm thinking of my once-broken wrist.  As I first began hand rehab, I had more grip than many people who were in therapy around me, but not anything approaching functional.  It took two months before I could fully stretch out my fingers and even more time before I could make a fist.

The healing from that break has been in the tiniest of measurements, but it has happened.  Maybe in the time between drywall deliveries, I've had a bit more healing of the wrist, hand, and arm that made carrying drywall easier.

Or maybe  I was dreading it so much yesterday that it didn't turn out to be as bad as I was expecting.

There are other possibilities.  We positioned the delivery so that it was a more direct route to the door.  I have cut back the bushes that blocked part of our way before.  It was much cooler yesterday than during our first drywall delivery, although I wouldn't think temperature had much to do with it.

Whatever the reason, I'm grateful that it went smoothly.  One of our neighborhood friends who has lived in many house renovations herself says that in a time of renovation, if you're making any progress on a home renovation, it's substantial progress, even if it seems miniscule.  And it's not going backwards, which is so easy in home repair.

Maybe the same is true for much of life.