By The Grace of God

hurricane-matthew

Wow, where to begin? These past few weeks have been event filled ones for sure. You remember how excited I was to be attending the #WOWSummit hosted by Moms Meet? Well the week of the summit, Hurricane Matthew was raising his ugly head in the Atlantic Ocean. Both my friend, Laura and I anxiously watched the weather carefully. We went back and forth on whether or not we should go. We finally said let’s wait to make the final decision on Thursday, the night before we were supposed to leave.

So Thursday came around, and the forecast had Matthew turning out to sea. So after talking to both of our husbands, we decided to go. I will admit that I was little nervous about going, but I was also looking forward to spending some time with Laura. Who knew that Matthew would turn inward and create for the lack of a better word- a big MESS.

When we called home to check on everybody Saturday, we were told to call before we left to make the journey back the next day. We might not be able to make it back home as roads were flooding. I will admit that I was struck with a sudden panic. I kept asking myself why did I leave my family and are we going to be able to make it back?

Laura being the forward thinker that she is, went grocery shopping while we were still at the conference. We didn’t know how bad the situation would be when we got home, so we wanted to have some supplies when we did get home. I stayed in the car talking to my girls on the phone. I was in a  total panic mode.

But before I went to bed, I felt a sudden peace fall over me, and I knew that God would make way for us to get home.

[info_box type=”pale_box”]So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand. Isaiah 41:10[/info_box]

Sunday morning rolled around, and we called home. Raul sent me some pictures of our house. I have always hated that hill that we live on, because let’s face it when walking, running, or riding a bike up it, it is pure torture. But that day, I had a new appreciation for it. Right around the corner was this scene.

bridge-near-our-house

But at our house, this is what it looked like.

my-hill

Both my husband and Laura’s husband, Steven scouted out ways for us to get home. They told us to forget coming back the way we went to the conference because the roads were flooded. Oh, did I mention that we drove to the conference? It is a really eerie sight when you see a sign that all roads into NC are closed!!!

all-lanes-closed-sign

I know this picture isn’t the greatest but if you look close you can see the words.

Matthew sure did leave his mark, and as we got closer and closer to home, we begin to see the evidence of the chaos he created. Some of the rivers were almost crossing the road. We were very lucky to have been able to arrive home safely. But during the drive, Mikaela started sending me these pictures.

Odom Farm

The corn maze at Odom Farming Inc. was underwater.

Road damage

The damage that was done to one of the roads near our house.

before the waters took over the road

Before the flood waters took over the road.

The Weary Travelers Home

We finally made it home safely.

Hurricane Matthew had dropped over 18″ of rain on our county, which caused the rivers around us to flood.  It was almost a week before we could drive down our road.

first-day

This was the first day.

middle of the week

This was the same road in the middle of the week.

end-of-week

By the end of the week, we were able to drive down the road.

During this time, we were inside the house, I went through our closets and got together several donation boxes for those that were affected by the flood.

donations

There were some people who lost everything in the aftermath of Hurricane Matthew, the flood. Schools were closed all last week and won’t reopen until tomorrow and on a two-hour delay. Our county was cut in half by the flood waters. Roads were damaged, and many now are closed for repair.

But I will have to say that what I saw on Facebook was refreshing. For the first time, there were no arguments over politicians, no debates on what lives matter. All I saw were people coming together as one race and willing to help each other out. It is sad that it takes such a tragedy like this to stop all the nonsense. Life hasn’t gotten back to normal yet, but it is getting there.

So that was my eventful couple weeks – I will write about the #WOWSummit soon. How did you fare with the hurricane?

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3 Comments

  1. It’s a blessing that your family was okay! It was refreshing to see people stepping in to help each other. I wish it didn’t take tragic times for us to connect as one.

  2. I love you, friend. That was such a memorable trip and you wrote this piece fabulously! I remember driving over that first bridge, with the water right up to the road, and having an overwhelming anxiety but then you said ‘He’s making a way, Laura, He’s making a way’ … yes He did and I am so glad you were there to remind me!!

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