I didn't sleep that night.<\/p>\n
Not properly.<\/p>\n
First, I needed to find someone who could help.<\/p>\n
I called the Harvey Farmers Cooperative's emergency number.<\/p>\n
The recording directed customers to leave a message.<\/p>\n
I tried again.<\/p>\n
Then I waited.<\/p>\n
Eventually, a man answered.<\/p>\n
It was around 12:40 in the morning.<\/p>\n
"Harvey Farmers Co-op. Emergency service."<\/p>\n
His voice sounded tired.<\/p>\n
I explained who I was and gave him Mom's address.<\/p>\n
"My mother's name is Elsie Heinz. She's eighty-two. Her propane tank is almost empty, and the furnace has stopped running."<\/p>\n
There was a pause.<\/p>\n
"How much is left?"<\/p>\n
"Five percent."<\/p>\n
Another silence.<\/p>\n
Then he asked a question that made me realize he knew exactly who Mom was.<\/p>\n
"Is this Art Heinz's wife?"<\/p>\n
"Yes."<\/p>\n
"My name is Duane Kessler," he said. "I've been delivering propane to that farm for more than twenty years. I knew your father."<\/p>\n
His tone changed.<\/p>\n
"How is Elsie?"<\/p>\n
"She's awake. She's sitting in her living room wearing her winter coat."<\/p>\n
He didn't say anything for a moment.<\/p>\n
Then he asked about the road conditions.<\/p>\n
I explained that the snow had drifted across the gravel section-line road.<\/p>\n
Mom's property was twelve miles east of Harvey, with eight miles of gravel road between the paved highway and the farm.<\/p>\n
The county sometimes cleared that stretch only once a week.<\/p>\n
Duane told me he couldn't safely bring the delivery truck out in the middle of the night.<\/p>\n
He promised to come as soon as the county opened the road.<\/p>\n
"First thing in the morning," he said. "I'll get there as soon as I can."<\/p>\n
I thanked him.<\/p>\n
Then he gave me some instructions.<\/p>\n
He told me to lower the thermostat to fifty-five degrees temporarily.<\/p>\n
I didn't like the idea.<\/p>\n
But he explained that the remaining fuel needed to last until the delivery arrived.<\/p>\n
He also told me to move Mom into the warmest room, close the doors to unused areas, and look for an electric space heater.<\/p>\n
"Art used to keep one downstairs," he said. "Near the water softener."<\/p>\n
I remembered it.<\/p>\n
Dad had used it when the well equipment needed extra protection.<\/p>\n
I went down into the basement.<\/p>\n
The stairs creaked beneath my boots.<\/p>\n
The air down there was even colder.<\/p>\n
I found the heater behind the water softener.<\/p>\n
It was dusty, but the cord appeared undamaged.<\/p>\n
I carried it upstairs and placed it beside Dad's recliner.<\/p>\n
When I plugged it in, a small heating element began glowing orange.<\/p>\n
I checked the outlet and kept the heater away from the blanket and furniture.<\/p>\n
Then I shut the doors to the kitchen, dining room, and hallway.<\/p>\n
I wanted to keep as much warmth as possible in the room where Mom was sitting.<\/p>\n
I tucked Grandma's afghan around her legs.<\/p>\n
Then I removed my red parka and spread it over the blanket.<\/p>\n
Mom watched me.<\/p>\n
"Connie, you don't have to do all that."<\/p>\n
"Yes, I do."<\/p>\n
She looked toward the heater.<\/p>\n
"Your father always kept that thing."<\/p>\n
"I know."<\/p>\n
She said nothing more.<\/p>\n
I pulled a chair close to the recliner, but eventually sat on the floor with my back against its cracked vinyl side.<\/p>\n
I kept checking Mom.<\/p>\n
Every few minutes, I looked at the heater.<\/p>\n
I also checked the thermometer.<\/p>\n
It barely moved.<\/p>\n
I called Steve to tell him I had arrived.<\/p>\n
He wanted to know whether Mom was safe.<\/p>\n
"She's awake. I've found a heater, and the cooperative is coming in the morning."<\/p>\n
"Thank goodness."<\/p>\n
"I'll call you again tomorrow."<\/p>\n
"Stay with her, Connie."<\/p>\n
"I will."<\/p>\n
The rest of the night passed slowly.<\/p>\n
Mom eventually fell asleep.<\/p>\n
I stayed awake.<\/p>\n
Every time the old clock ticked, I became aware of how quiet the house was without the furnace.<\/p>\n
I kept thinking about the pink delivery ticket.<\/p>\n
Two hundred gallons.<\/p>\n
Four hundred dollars.<\/p>\n
Seven hundred and fifty dollars from the three of us.<\/p>\n
I tried to find an explanation that didn't involve my sister doing something she shouldn't have done.<\/p>\n
Perhaps there had been another delivery.<\/p>\n
Perhaps the paperwork was somewhere else.<\/p>\n
Perhaps the cooperative had made an error.<\/p>\n
I wanted one of those explanations to be true.<\/p>\n
But I couldn't make the numbers disappear.<\/p>\n
At seven the next morning, I heard a county snowplow working its way along the road.<\/p>\n
Its orange warning lights appeared through the frosted windows.<\/p>\n
I stood near the kitchen entrance and watched it pass.<\/p>\n
The road was finally being cleared.<\/p>\n
At ten-forty, I called the cooperative again.<\/p>\n
This time Marlene answered.<\/p>\n
She had worked at the front desk since I was in high school.<\/p>\n
"Connie Heinz! Duane told us about your mother. How is she doing?"<\/p>\n
"She's awake. Still cold, but we're managing."<\/p>\n
"He's getting the truck ready."<\/p>\n
I thanked her.<\/p>\n
Then I asked something I had been thinking about since finding the receipt.<\/p>\n
"Marlene, can I ask you about Mom's propane account?"<\/p>\n
"Of course."<\/p>\n
"Whose name is it under?"<\/p>\n
There was a short pause.<\/p>\n
"Pamela Ruff," she said. "Your sister set it up after your father passed away. She's the billing contact."<\/p>\n
I looked at the kitchen table.<\/p>\n
The pink delivery receipt was still in my pocket.<\/p>\n
"Is it possible to change the account holder?"<\/p>\n
"Certainly. We need one person responsible for the billing. If Pam agrees, we can transfer it. Or you can open a separate account under your own name."<\/p>\n
I didn't need another explanation.<\/p>\n
"I want a new account."<\/p>\n
"In your name?"<\/p>\n
"Yes."<\/p>\n
"All right. We can arrange that today."<\/p>\n
I looked toward the living room.<\/p>\n
Mom was resting beneath the blankets.<\/p>\n
Her winter coat was still on.<\/p>\n
I thought about the money we had sent every October.<\/p>\n
I thought about the delivery ticket.<\/p>\n
I thought about how close we had come to losing the furnace completely.<\/p>\n
And I made my decision.<\/p>\n
From that day forward, I would be responsible for Mom's propane account.<\/p>\n
Not because I wanted to take control away from Pam.<\/p>\n
Not because I wanted to embarrass her.<\/p>\n
Because I needed to know that the fuel was being ordered, delivered, and paid for.<\/p>\n
I couldn't leave something that important to an arrangement nobody was checking.<\/p>\n
Marlene asked me for the information needed to establish the new account.<\/p>\n
I gave it to her.<\/p>\n
She processed the change.<\/p>\n
By the time I hung up, the account would be under my name.<\/p>\n
I still hadn't spoken to Pam.<\/p>\n
Mom had asked me not to confront her.<\/p>\n
And I intended to honor that request for the moment.<\/p>\n
But I wasn't going to let the same thing happen again.<\/p>\n
At approximately two that afternoon, a large white propane truck finally appeared in the yard.<\/p>\n
I recognized Duane before he even stepped out.<\/p>\n
He was sixty-one, with a gray beard and a red face from years of working outdoors.<\/p>\n
He wore a Harvey Hornets stocking cap.<\/p>\n
When he reached the kitchen door, he knocked.<\/p>\n
Mom stood up slowly.<\/p>\n
She was still wearing her brown coat and knitted hat.<\/p>\n
Duane removed his cap when he saw her.<\/p>\n
"Mrs. Heinz, I'm sorry it took so long to get here."<\/p>\n
Mom gave him a small smile.<\/p>\n
"Oh, Duane. You shouldn't be out in weather like this."<\/p>\n
He glanced at the frosted windows.<\/p>\n
Then he looked toward the living room.<\/p>\n
He didn't argue.<\/p>\n
He simply nodded and walked back toward the truck.<\/p>\n
I watched him through the kitchen window.<\/p>\n
He connected the delivery equipment and began filling the tank.<\/p>\n
I stayed beside Mom.<\/p>\n
For the first time since arriving, I felt that we might actually get through the day without another problem.<\/p>\n
But the pink receipt was still in my pocket.<\/p>\n
And the decision I had made that morning meant that the next delivery would no longer depend on my sister's account.<\/p>\n
That was going to change our family.<\/p>\n
Source: kaylestore.net<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n I didn't sleep that night. Not properly. First, I needed to find someone who could help. I called the Harvey Farmers Cooperative's emergency number. The recording directed customers to leave … <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":10896,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10899","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sharestory"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/onesharedstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10899","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/onesharedstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/onesharedstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/onesharedstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/onesharedstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=10899"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/onesharedstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10899\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10911,"href":"https:\/\/onesharedstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10899\/revisions\/10911"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/onesharedstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/10896"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/onesharedstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=10899"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/onesharedstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=10899"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/onesharedstory.online\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=10899"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
\nClick here to continue reading: PART 4: The Furnace Finally Started Again, but Taking Over the Propane Account Created a Family Problem I Wasn’t Ready to Face<\/a><\/strong><\/h2>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"