Hurricane!

As I think about my time in Texas, I remember how my first thought of this place was similar to how Dorothy felt in Oz: completely awestruck by the exotic beauty, but a little intimidated by the unknown. One thing completely unknown to me was hurricanes.

We had been in Texas a little over a year when news of Hurricane Ike swept over the Gulf Coast. Being from Idaho potato country, I had never experienced such a thing and wasn't exactly sure what to expect.
Fortunately, I attended an emergency preparedness meeting at church a few weeks before the storm hit. I learned that my ward was broken up into areas with neighborhood captains in charge of checking on the  families nearest them before and after the storm. I was grateful to know that my family, along with every other member of my ward would be accounted for. Since we did not have anywhere to go and there was no forced evacuation, we planned to "hunker down."

I remember going to the grocery store a few days before the storm hit and wading my way through crowds of people with the same idea I had. Everyone wanted 1) water, 2)snack foods (crackers, cookies, etc. 3) BBQ brickettes and/or fireplace wood. I was amazed that the aisles containing those items were completely empty in more than one store! Luckily, I was able to get what I needed and packed a storage container of enough non-refridgerated foods and plenty of water. Although home improvements stores like Home Depot and Lowes had stacks of wood to board up windows, we did not do that. Many people taped 'X's across their windows to hold the glass together in case of shattering, but we did not do that either since we were on a law school budget.
 
The night before the storm hit, we moved the tub of food into our inner hallway and brought in all our potted plants and lawn chairs. We put the car in the garage, the kids to bed, and prayed a little harder for protection from the storm.  In the early hours of Saturday, September 13, 2008, the storm moved through Galvaston and over to the Houston area. As I lay in my bed, I was awakened by extreme winds. I don't remember the rain as much as the wind because I had never heard wind that fast. The sound woke up two of my children, then ages three and six, who raced into my room and slept at the floor near my bed. I began to worry, so I went into my nine-year-old's room and brought her into my room too. Ironically, my husband slept through the whole thing!

We awoke in the morning with no electricity or water. Outside, the streets were strewn with tree branches and debris, but our house remained intact. Along with most of our neighbors, we spent the morning cleaning up our yard. My kids were amazed to see what a huge pile we made with our yard cleanup. Next, we piled into our minivan to survey the damage to our neighborhood. Looking out our windows, we saw many homes with roof damage, fallen trees and branches blocking driveways or doorways. We saw many people working to clean up the mess the storm left behind, bundling small branches and twigs, and raking as we had done earlier. The one blessing through it all was how everyone worked together to help each other.  Everyone was just a little bit kinder to each other.

By dinnertime, we had visitors. My sister's in-laws, the Bassetts, came over to check on us and invited us to stay at their house since they had gotten their power back. Apparently they lived near a police or fire station (I forget) and got it back sooner than most. They were a godsend and took us in for a week. While my husband still had to work and stayed to keep an eye on our house, my kids and I were kept cool and comfortable. While there, we saw on TV  the mess the hurricane made around the Houston area. Streets were flooded and many on the coast lost their homes and businesses. We heard that it had been a category 4 hurricane and was the third costliest hurricane in the United States!

When we went to fill up our car, there were extremely long lines for gas at about every gas station and many places ran out of gasoline very quickly. My husband soon realized that it was better to fill up at night when the lines were shorter. Curfews were also enforced to prevent looting or any criminal mischief. It actually made it harder for us since my husband would come to the Bassetts house after work which was often about nine p.m. He could never stay long because he had to get back to protect the house.

My daughters' school was closed for two weeks and church was canceled for a few weeks because so many people needed help. In retrospect, my kids say Hurricane Ike was one of their best adventures. For me, it is a memory I know I will never forget.