Pre-Harvey Post

Hurricane Harvey is all over the news tonight. It makes my heart skip a beat or two thinking about the excessive rainfall and the flooding danger. Everything is going wonderfully at school and beyond. Why does Harvey have to come along and ruin it all? Who knows how long we will be out of school next week.  Who knows if I will have a house to live in after the projected 12-25 inches of rain falls. The calm before the storm feels like Ike and sounds like an Allison. I knew what I was getting into with Ike since I had some time in Houston. I had lived through Tropical Storm Francis and Hurricane Rita. I fled to San Antonio during Rita because I saw what a hurricane could do to a city in Katrina. Luckily, Rita turned toward the Texas and Louisiana border before landfall. I know where Sabine Pass is because of this. I don't think we will be as lucky this time. To me, this is an Ike moment combined with an Allison. I would take another Ike moment if it means that my house will not flood. I can live without electricity for a few days. I can't, however, survive flooding with 25 inches of rain. Between Ike and Allison, which was worse?  For me, Allison was more egregious. Allison seemed to never end. The rains were bruising my roof. The Doppler Radar showed a constant, menacing red. At 1:30 am, it wouldn't stop. I feel asleep at 3 am not knowing what to do. I was exhausted with fear. Finally, Allison subsided. I survived the storm with minimal damage. Not all residents of Houston could say the same. Some of my colleagues were heavily flooded and lost their houses. I felt fortunate compared to some people. This time? Who knows?

Come Wednesday of next week, will I be sitting here posting the after effects of the storm counting my blessings in a shelter or in my home?  Will my friends and colleagues fair as well or worse than me?  Will all of my students be safe along with their parents?  The first week of school has been crazy. We had an lunar eclipse the first day of school and now, to round out the week, we have an uninvited bully named Harvey. Will he be kind or unmercilessly relentless? I just have two words for Hurricane Harvey: HAVE MERCY!  SMH and hold my heart. We will see.