It’s been a while since my last post.

I haven’t been feeling that well. I have Sjorgens, and although I’m blessed for not having a more severe autoimmune, this one sometimes makes me feel extremely tired and it´s not fun at all. There are days when I feel very good and others not that much.

Anyway, last week my children started their school term. My first thought was, “I’m going to have more time on my hands!” This, of course, meant being able to share some more memories here! So on Wednesday morning I started thinking… ok, which trip should I write about… I had a few in mind. The memory I´m sharing now was not on my mind that day.

I decided to post later, I had to pack, we were travelling next morning. That Friday was our anniversary. Dad and I wanted to celebrate our 16 years of marriage, all together, attending the Coldplay concert in Houston. Everyone was excited about our family road trip!! Didn´t know about Hurricane Harvey also making its way to where we were going.

Like I said, we didn´t know at first that Harvey was hitting Houston, much less that it was going to be that destructive. I have to confess I couldn´t sleep those nights, I was scared. Is not that we hadn´t experience stronger hurricanes before. I remember how devastating Hurricane Gilbert (category 5) was when I was a child, and we all remember Alex from some years ago. But this was different. We were not in our home, it was an unknown city for us, excessive rain for days meant devastating results and the idea of encountering tornadoes (that just never happens where we live) just freak me out. We made some mistakes, but we were extremely blessed in the end.

We were staying at The Woodlands on a rented apartment but we were told we had to move out by Sunday so that added some tension for us. Thankfully we had bought enough water and food. They told us we had to stay put, it was dangerous to leave. You could encounter flooding or tornadoes if you took the roads.

 

On Sunday morning an immensely generous family open their home for us to stay. It was a miracle to find, at that point, an unflooded route. But there it was, the only access open from our location lead to this family´s house. It was definitely the hand of God. My children did notice the danger of it all, even though we tried to stay calm. The SMS warnings about “flooding”, “seek shelter”, “tornado” generated even more stress. So there we went, praying we could arrive safely from one place to another. On our way we saw flooded roads, houses and establishments, rain was heavy and winds were strong. At one point we encounter a flooded section of the highway, we waited till another car crossed it so we could see how shallow it was, then we adventured ourselves too. Once we arrived with this extraordinary family we felt so much safer. Everything change at that moment.

Many things crossed my mind at night while trying to sleep. I wrote some…

(On Friday night)

Coldplay concert has been canceled. So we didn’t know about the hurricane at first, but we should have returned as soon as we found out, we should have left!! Why were we so naive to think we could attend the concert and then leave Saturday morning. What a mistake.

I feel guilty, I was the one who suggested buying the Coldplay tickets and coming here on the first place…

You learn from mistakes. This trip will serve us for future traveling.

Maybe tomorrow morning we can leave to Austin. All routes can´t be flooded. Yes, we will leave tomorrow.

Hope my niece is doing ok.   (My sister´s daughter is a Rice student)

Please God, let us stay safe. 

(Saturday night)

This kind of events remind me of the many things you just can’t control. We are so vulnerable to nature. 

For how long are we going to be here? All roads are now flooded. We are renting an apartment and we extended our stay, but only until Sunday. This is mortifying!

My children’s school? safety is first, but I have to call the school and tell them we are here.

We bought enough food and water, but it is scary to be in a place you don’t know well and facing this natural disaster, we are so uncertain of everything. 

I just can´t sleep. Please God let us be safe.

(Sunday night)

I now feel safer. My husband is beside me and my children are ok. Thank you.

The sound of the wind is frightening!! And the rain just won´t stop!! Please let it stop.

So many people without a home right now. Please God let them be safe. 

I hope my niece is ok. 

I thank God for His protection during our time in Houston. I also thank this generous family for having us, we will eternally be grateful to them. They turned around our experience making it positive, memorable and happy.

For us, this are memories now. We are safe back home.

But my prayers continue to all the people who are suffering from the devastating effects of Harvey.

I asked friends with families in Houston if I could share some photos of theirs. Here are some. Lets pray for all people in Houston, Corpus Christi, Galveston, and every city damaged by Hurricane Harvey. May they maintain a strong spirit and soon return to their homes and normal lives.