I'm Sick Of The Word Historic!

Historic; Historic; Historic; Historic.  I’m sick and tired of the word Historic!

Yesterday, as one of the nurses was doing her job taking Mother’s blood pressure, pulse, etc., we were talking about the predicted upcoming storms. We both remarked on how strange the weather had been for more than two years. We also commented on what we felt was the beginning of this change: the September 2008 wind storm that was the remnant of Hurricane Ike which hit Galveston, Texas September 13. Western Kentucky received sustained winds of 70+ mph during that weekend, knocking out power for hours/days and ambushing huge trees. Who would have ever thought that a storm hitting that far away would cause so much damage to the middle of the country?

Next was the “historic” Ice Storm of 2009. When we heard on January 26 that Jim Cantore of the Weather Channel was in downtown Paducah, we knew we were in for a very bad time. Ice covered everything; the absence of electricity brought eerie silence, only shattered at times by the sound gunshot type sound of breaking limbs and tree trunks. In contrast, the occasional whisper of the power lines falling could be heard. Many were without phone service and power and all that entailed, for weeks - and in a few cases for a couple of months. Gas pumps didn’t work without electricity; supplies were sparse because transportation was risky; some businesses, such as Wal-Mart, only allowed a few people in the stores at a time and then only a certain amount of items could be purchased; schools were canceled for weeks; there were several deaths from people trying to keep warm with generators or kerosene heaters. On the upside of this, families got reacquainted because all generations spent time playing board games, cards, talking, and reminiscing.

That summer things changed; we had higher than normal temperatures.           
The next significant event was the drought of summer 2010. I seem to remember no rain fall on my yard for 72 days. Lawns dried up and died; crops failed; on top of the drought was extreme heat - I believe 43 straight days of temperatures over 90, some over 100. I remember driving down the road and looking at the thermometer and read 107.

This past winter we had 19 inches of snow in one month. The average for this area is only 9 inches per year. Just as we would take a sigh of relief, we would be hit again with deep snow and sometimes ice with it. Once again, schools were out for multiple days.

Recently, during 12 days of April, we received 17.5 inches of rain, causing extreme, again using the word “historic” flooding, forcing people out of their homes, farmland lost, and many areas that will never be the same. Many schools were forced to call of classes because no one could get to the school.                                    

The word “historic” became a normal part of our conversations.

Following the rains and floods, we are now in the midst of more tornados than ever on record. People to our south no longer have homes, communities, or even towns. People to our west have been hit the hardest. Joplin, Missouri basically is no more. They vow to rebuild, but many will pack up and leave the destruction behind. Loss of lives in both these areas is mind boggling. Others are dealing with shock and a type of Post Traumatic Stress. It is heartbreaking to watch the news interviewing parents who have lost their children, or children who no longer have a home or parents. Their future is not a welcoming, friendly environment. 

In all of this, I am so blessed.. Physically I am untouched; emotionally, well, that’s a different story. My heart and prayers do go out to all of these people. Whatever I can do is only a drop in the bucket to what is needed, but I am not able to physically help; God has blessed me with enough abundance to give financially and pray others will use hands and feet to help.

Heartbreaking

I just learned a few minutes ago that a school bus from a local county crashed and one child is confirmed dead and 20 sent to the hospital. These were 1st and 2nd graders in an accelerated reader program on a field trip.  The children were headed back to school from a sports complex. Several were airlifted, others taken to local hospitals. What a tragic ending to what I suspect was a day of fun for these children.

There were 3 bus loads on the trip. A deer pushed out of the woods by high water ran in front of this bus. The driver swerved, the bus overturned, and fell into a ditch.

I pray that no one blames this driver.  I suspect he/she is doing enough blaming themselves.  They must be feeling overwhelming guilt, even if though not deserved.

I have never had any desire to be a school bus driver.  Yeah, I know there are a few bad ones out there, but most are loving and caring for their passengers. They get to know them and their families.  I applaud their dedication to children.

May God comfort the families involved in this tragedy.  My heart is breaking for them as they deal with this now, and in the future.

Updating my blog

WOW! Two and a half years since my last blog. Since I got on Facebook, my need to blog diminished. Being able to post a short status is less time consuming, but not near as satisfying. So, here goes my latest.

First, a little “catch up” on the events of the last couple of years.

Ice Storm 2009 hit our area on January 26. Russ and I considered ourselves very fortunate because our power was restored in one week. Some went over a month without service. During that time, we spent one night at Susanna's and then evacuated to TN to be with Kevin, both times taking Phoebe with us. I'm glad we did. That gave Russ and Kevin time to spend with each other. Susanna and Jamie offered for us to stay with them because they had a generator and kept one room warm, but six people in one room and not being able to flush the toilet was not a good thing, especially since Kevin wanted us with him and he was the only one in an entire house and was not affected by the ice storm.

At the last blog, Russ was losing weight. That continued for a few months. He finally decided to have the surgery in Vanderbilt for the multiple aneurysms, even though the odds were not good. He came very close to dying on the operating table, and the doctors were not able to do all the surgeries they had planned. After being semi-comatose for two weeks, with only a few moments of being able to communicate with us, he did not survive. This was the first of many changes that have taken place in my life since that time.

Next was the change of bowling centers. The one I had frequented for 25 years was closed. Since I need that physical activity and interaction with people outside of church, I joined a league several miles away. Many of my friends from the former lanes also joined his league, so those friendships continue, and new ones were started.

Then, a situation arose that has effects still continuing today - one that motivated my entire family to change our church membership of 43 years. I will not go into details here because that is not something I want to reveal publicly.

I was elected and installed President Elect of our Regional Women’s Ministry - not without undercurrents.

Since I no longer teach Sunday School, or assist in a Bible Study, I have more free time, but must admit I do not use it wisely. Instead of continuing to study the scriptures, I find myself crafting or computing. My faith hasn’t wavered, but has not grown either. I need to get back to the study.

One granddaughter had a serious car accident; one became the object of bullying; one has gotten married; one has moved in with her father. The grandson has become very involved in basketball.

The make-up of my friends has changed. Some have gotten closer and some have grown less close. I was expecting this to happen, but the reasons were different than I thought would cause this.

I have always considered myself self-sufficient (not by choice - would have loved someone to take care of me, but that didn’t happen), but now when I get “over my head” in circumstances, I have to call someone to help.

My mother (now 91½) is becoming more and more dependent on me. Friends offer to do things for her and she won’t let them. She says “Sidney will take care of it for me.” She doesn’t let new people into her life. When she falls and has to call for help, she becomes very stubborn with medical help, and when they insist, she gets offensive with them. Her weight is slowly declining and that is a concern for the doctor and me. She has had MRSA outbreaks twice. One place on her face continues to flare and now we are adding another doctor to our ever growing list. The last hospitalization, which was for blood transfusion, added a surgeon because her veins are no longer sufficient to take blood. We are now having 3-5 doctor appointments per week. So far, I have managed to work my appointments around her schedule; when I have a conflict, guess whose appointment has to change!

That’s about all I can emotionally deal with right now. I will try to actually blog further at a later time.