Harvey, Go Home
Ding! Ding! Ding! Ding! Text messages come flowing into my phone as fast as the waters in the creeks outside.
“Are you safe?”
“Is everyone okay?”
“Let me know if you need help.”
Never in my life has rain been less relaxing. My mind whirls with thoughts of my parents’ house with my childhood inside, the storage room with my life inside, and my classroom with my livelihood inside. When will it end?
The news reports are less than helpful for my immediate area, but show the devastation in downtown Houston. Places I know well and visit often are replaced with lakes created by the Buffalo Bayou and buckets of rain.
It’s weird. As some reports suggest, people are wondering why Houston didn’t evacuate since it is a well-known flood plain. But, being here, you don’t realize how bad it is until it’s bad. When I look out my window, I don’t see standing water. I don’t see the creek overflowing. I only see pictures on television or Facebook. You think it’s over, but then the rain comes again, and you are left wondering: Do I pack a bag? Do I try to get in the car and leave? Do I stay and watch as my belongings and memories sink to the bottom of the water?
Reflection:
I had never thought of writing as a release before this storm. I tried to read my grad school books, but couldn’t get my mind off the words I wanted to write down for this challenge. I really don’t have much to say other than I am luckier than most right now. I have power, food, water, clothes, and my family and friends are safe (for the most part). If you feel called to help, please seek out donations and make sure they are legitimate first. My school district has damaged schools, but Houston ISD will for sure need more help. Teachers will need books, supplies, anything. Thank you.
I, too, wrote about the rain, but it was so very different than the kind of rain Houstonians are experiencing. I've lived through one hurricane (i.e., Gloria) years ago when I was a kid growing up in NJ. It was nothing compared to Harvey. I cannot even imagine what ya'll are going through.
ReplyDeleteMy daughter is in Houston and I also wrote about the hurricane. She, too, is safe, with water, food, a generator, and good people. But up in Illinois I continue to worry. Will she continue to be safe? When will it end? What will Houston be like?
ReplyDelete