Hurricane Ike

Probably all of you know that there is a hurricane in the Gulf of Mexico ravaging the coast of Texas. But did you know that experts anticipate North Texas being affected as well? Okay, you might think it would be obvious that we'd see the effects in some thunderstorms and windy days. What they are anticipating, though, seems to be a little worse than what Heath & I are accustomed to. When we first heard the news report a couple nights ago we were skeptical at best. The news report showed a lady with an emergency backpack. She explained what we would need if our electricity was out for several days.

Say, what?!!

That's right - a few days.

I still might have ignored the newscaster's advice had there not been something else that confirmed their story. Yesterday morning, I had emailed some girlfriends to see if anyone was up for hanging out today since Heath would be at class all day. At first, they were all gung-ho about doing something fun, but as the day wore on, emails trickled in...

"...I saw the weather report, and well, uh, maybe we should hold off on making plans."

"Yeah, it looks like it's going to hit around noon, so maybe this isn't such a good idea."

"Let's play it by ear."

Skepticism meets Worry. All of these girls are seasoned Texans and know much, much more about hurricanes than I do. Since the storm is supposed to hit us around noon or 1pm with the strength of a tropical storm, I decided it would be better to be safe than sorry. I made an "emergency" run to Walmart at 6:30 this morning. My goal - non perishable things to eat. Not my forte. I try to stay far away from packaged foods 1) because generally they aren't extremely healthy and 2) because if it's in the house I will eat all of it! I wandered the aisles of Walmart and here's what I left with:




Besides the food, I picked up a couple more candles and topped off my tank of gas. Of course, if the anticipated deluge of rain hits us, our street will be flooded, and my full tank of gas rendered useless. Heath filled up our giant camping water jug. Now we just wait. Mostly I hope we don't have to go without electricity for too long. Which reminds me, I better do some laundry, take a shower, and make coffee now, just in case.

All this fades in comparison to what the people of Houston & Galveston and all the cities in between are facing. Many of them had to evacuate their homes, leaving precious things behind and taking only a few essentials. And now they get to wait out the storm in some warehouse or gym with 300 other people. When I think of that and of what they might have left (or not have left) when they return to their homes, I'm ashamed of my worries, humbled, and ready to get on my knees for them.

"Who has measured the waters in the hollow of His hand,
measured heaven with a span
and calculated the dust of the earth in a measure?
Weighed the mountains in scales and the hills in a balance?"


"Trust in Him at all times, you people;
Pour out your heart before Him;
God is a refuge for us."


Isaiah 40:12; Psalm 62:8