Sunday, September 14, 2008

we made it through

Hi, I'm writing this from my sister's house north of Austin. We did stay in Houston for the storm and lost power at about 3 am as the hurricane force winds hit us. By some amazing stroke of luck, we did get some sleep that night. The wind was howling but I didn't hear or see any large pieces of debris flying around. We got up, deboarded the house, and after hearing that power would be restored between 3 days and 4 weeks, we packed up and went to my sister's house. At that point the freeways were pretty clear, although we drove for more than 2 hours before getting to an area where everyone had power. 30 minutes from my sister's house I got a text message that our power was back on. dh's office doesn't have power, however, and the boys don't have school until Thursday, so we're staying another night here. It sounds like there are gas stations and grocery stores open near our house so we should be ok. I have to say that many people are going through terrible trauma right now. Please remember them in your thoughts and/or prayers. I feel like it was a near-miss for us and I hope to head back and help in whatever way I can. Thanks for your supportive comments and emails. This whole thing is surreal to me. Places I know and love are not there anymore. I don't know the status of the library where I work. It is just unreal to think that such a large city is practically at a standstill. My heart aches for those who chose not to follow the mandatory evacuation order. We've had so many storms almost hit us that they must have assumed this one would change course or not inflict very much damage. This is a sad time for a city I have grown to love.

4 comments:

QueenScarlett said...

So glad you're safe.

A good lesson for those of us who haven't had to go through this to listen to evac recommendations.

Kristi said...

Thanks for posting an update. I've been wondering about how you guys fared all weekend long. I'm glad you are all safe and well!

Patty O. said...

I am so relieved to hear you guys made it through ok. I cannot even imagine what it would be like to go through something like that and to have your city damaged so much. If you can think of anything those of us who don't live in TX can do to help, please let me know. I think we will donate to the church's humanitarian aid fund. The church helped tons in the midwest with all the flooding this summer. I'm sure they will be working with TX too. Good luck!

Anonymous said...

I am so happy that you guys are okay. It has been surreal to watch the images and footage online and to recognize the places they are showing. I can't imagine going through that. I am glad that your family and home were safe.