20 things I hope you never get to experience in life

1. Having to leave your home and not knowing if it will be there when you get back because the area where you live is under a mandatory evacuation.

2. Traveling in the car with your dog and cat at a snail's pace because the traffic is bumper to bumper for 17 hours straight at night during an extreme Texas heat wave. (Sept. 2005)

3. Staying at a relative's house and watching the weather channel and the news to see when and where the hurricane is expected to make landfall.

4. Staying up all night watching Geraldo Rivera get knocked off his feet by the wind and sprayed by the waves on Galveston Beach.

5. Calling your friends to see how high the water is getting now and if it's possible to get to your house.

6. Having your friend tell you to "expect the worst" before you come home.

7. Driving home "expecting the worst" and smelling "the worst" for miles before you get there.

8. Finding your outside cat traumatized under your pick-up truck and buried in soggy marsh reeds.

9. Not being able to open your front door because it's swollen shut and the lock doesn't work from being submerged under water.

10. Finding dead fish and mud in your house or a live alligator in your next door neighbor's yard.

11. Having all your furniture and appliances turned topsy turvy.

12. Climbing over your mattress and feeling it squish even though it's not a water bed.

13. Wearing a mask to clean out your house as you watch the white mold turning to black.

14. Throwing all your earthly belongings, including the love letters your husband wrote you before you married, in the middle of your front yard.

15. Having to watch your children go through all your stuff BEFORE you are dead and gone.

16. Losing 30 years worth of pictures, baby and wedding albums.

17. Tearing out the walls of your house and spraying it with bleach to kill the mold and mildew.

18. Living in a single hotel room with your family of four for more than 2 weeks.

19. Looking for a place to stay close to home and finding NOTHING is available. Absolutely nothing.

20. Getting a call in the middle of the night from a friend saying "I think your house may be on fire."

The list may sound somewhat morbid to some, but I have found writing about my experiences to be somewhat healing. It's all part of a grieving process that we go through. I have been told that anytime we experience a loss we must also take the time to grieve our losses. I am not trying to seek pity here, I only want to share from my heart and remind others to appreciate and enjoy what you have while you have it. I know I am alot more thankful for what God has given me and realize that I can live with alot less "stuff" than all the things I had accumulated over the years. I am thankful that I have my life and a strong family of faith who is so supportive of me.

God shows his sense of humor

In the days and weeks following Hurricane Ike the Lord reminded me how thankful I was to have my daughter Lawren still living at home with us. Losing all her cherished momentos from her schooldays and her bedroom furniture that she picked out the previous Christmas was a real challenge for her as well as the rest of us. She was so patient and ready to help out in any way during those tough times and I really saw her grow and mature tremendously.

After we got settled in our new temporary "home", Lawren seemed to become somewhat withdrawn. We were all beginning to think about building our home again, we had something to look forward to and to hope for better days ahead. I realized that Lawren needed to have something to look forward to as well. So.... since Lawren had never flown before we decided to send her somewhere. Her birthday is in Dec. so combining her birthday and Christmas seemed like a good plan. So ..... where do you want to go, Lawren? New York!!! All right, so we get online and start trying to find out about making a trip to NY. The only way she could possibly go would be if a friend went with her and she had a friend who had made the trip on several occasions so it was decided that the 2 girls would go.

Later, as the actual trip to the airport drew near, I thought "I must have been crazy to ever think she could do this on her own." But this trip was about so much more, it was about achieveing independence, and it was about living out your dreams. And it was about giving a gift to our only daughter who brings so much happiness to our family. Well, now to the sense of humor part...... As Lawren was packing to get ready to leave, she marched in the kitchen and announced "Just so you know ..... if I happen to see Mario Lopez, AND IF he asks me to marry him...... then I am not coming back home ..... just to let you know." We all had a good laugh and off she went to New York. That was on Friday.

On Saturday was Lawren's 22nd birthday. We were at a Lamar basketball game when I get a text message at the same time her dad gets a phone call. It was Lawren. She was at a restaurant in NY and guess who was sitting 4 chairs in front of her? You guessed it! MARIO LOPEZ Needless to say she was beside herself. She was texting me like crazy and saying "OMG, I think I'm about to throw up .... I can't believe it, he's sitting right in front of me." Despite all my encouragement, insisting, coaxing, pleading, she refused to go over to him and ask for a picture. She didn't want him to think she was one of those crazy stalker people. Her friend ordered dessert just so they could stay longer, but Lawren was so mesmerized by Mario that she was glued to her chair. She said "Mom, this is absolutely the best birthday I've ever had!"

Jack and I laughed so much that it made the gift all the more worth it for us. What is funny is the fact that the whole weekend they were in NY they did not see one other celebrity. Only Mario.

You know I think God has a wonderful sense of humor. I would have liked to have taken credit for the Mario sighting, and said, Yes, we planned that for your birthday, but you know I think our heavenly Father should get all the credit for this amazing, funny, memorable, birthday gift to a very special young lady. I am reminded of the verse that says that if we as earthly parents know how to give good gifts to our children, HOW MUCH MORE does our heavenly Father know how to give good gifts to us. We are so blessed.

Hurricane Rita part two

Saturday, Sept. 24, 2005

Matt and Shelbea decided we should go out to James and Julie McRight's since they don't have so many trees around and have a newer brick home. As we head out, not a long drive, it is already raining here. The hurricane has already moved inland but we don't know much yet. We get to the McRight's and James is out helping at the camp. Julie and her son Ian are mopping water out of their mud room with a wet vac. They had cable so we could watch the storm and get some news. The phone rings and the hay barn has blown over and is out in the road. Matt goes out to help move the tin out of the road and James heads home to help.

Hurricane Rita part one

Wednesday, Sept. 21, 2005

Left work today under a voluntary evacuation alert for our area due to Hurricane Rita. Not sure whether we will leave town or when since the hurricane is expected to head somewhere south of Galveston. Jack baptized Rodney Lamb at church tonight (68 yrs. old). No kids at Awanas, dimissed the few adults at church and had praise team practice. Went home but didn't feel much like packing.

At work today, one of my customers told me she felt like God was telling her to move back to California and hugged my neck. She thanked me for all my help and said she never got help like that from her previous case manager.

Thursday, Sept. 22, 2005

Got up early, Jack said the hurricane had turned and was headed right for us! Began to immediately pack and load the van and jeep with pictures, important papers, etc. Plus our dog and cat! (Abby and Milo) We were through around 9 a.m. but decided to wait to start our trip due to the tremendous traffic jams on all the highways leading out of Houston and Southeast Texas. Watched the news all day and decided to leave town about 4:40 p.m. Didn't feel like eating all day due to feeling anxiety about the days ahead and grieving somewhat over saying good-bye to our house and belongings.

Later we wished we had eaten something or at least been better prepared for the long road ahead!

Friday, Sept. 23, 2005

It took us 5 hours! to drive 30 miles from Bridge City to Buna, another hour or more to Kirbyville! People were lined up waiting for gas or to get food at the few gas stations along the way. Fortunately, we didn't have to stop for gas, we pressed on, stopping 3 times on the side of the road for me to pee in the dark. We tried to stop and sleep once but it was really too hot to sleep and you couldn't lean the seats back to relax due to all the stuff we were carrying. I took my contacts out during this stop and so I put my glasses on as we started out again. The Lord was really looking out for me because I weaved into the oncoming traffice and off the right shoulder of the road so many times I can't tell you! By the time we stopped again to rest about 3 a.m., I was nauseated but had nothing on my stomach to give up. I have never felt so exhausted in my entire life and found myself praying out loud "Lord help us ..... rescue us!" This was absolutely the longest night of my life! It was a little cooler at this spot and we got a little rest, about an hour and a half. We started out again and this time just as we got into Center Texas I almost put the jeep in the ditch. Again, God was watching over me BIG TIME! Jack saw me in his rear view mirror and we stopped at McDonald's for a break. There were people everywhere. I get out and hear a voice calling me "Ms. Kay! Ms. Kay!" I looked and there was one of my customers and she pointed to another, also one of my customers. I have no idea who either one of them was. I headed inside McDonald's and Jack got in a line all the way back to the door and I got in a line for the restroom. I spoke to a woman in front of me who said she was from Pt. Neches and had been traveling for 23 hours! A this I began to cry as the realization of my near accident and surviving the long night began to set in. After we arrived at Matt and Shelbea's house in Carthage we heard story after story of situations far worse than ours. One was a charter bus of nursing home residents from Houston that burned completely up in Wilmer Texas outside of Dallas. At least 24 were killed due to an oxygen tank that exploded. People stranded on I-45 out of Houston in the scorching heat running out of gas.

Today we slept until noon and after Matt got in from being in Tyler, we had supper and went out to the camp where almost 600 evacuees were being housed. First Baptist Carthage sent volunteers to help and the National Missions department sent a trailer of food and supplies. They were barbecuing Tyson chickens and had them coming out of their ears. We slept that night like a dream.

Just waiting for the hurricane to hit tonight but too tired to stay up and Matt doesn't have cable or internet. Still praying for God to spare us. In fact, this morning while I was in the shower I cried out to God and pleaded with HIm for mercy on us. So tired, so exhausted and so helpless. Yet, God is in control.