Mother's Day and Flood Recovery 2010

I was awoken around 6:30am with breakfast in bed. Dry bagel and a mug of apple juice. It was delicious. I overheard the kids talking before they brought it to me. Brother said, "Do you know how to make Mommy's coffee?" and Little Bitty answered, "No, but we can give her apple juice." So sweet. And I didn't punish them for not bringing coffee. I just waited patiently for Daddy to help them make it before I got out of bed. I'm nice like that.

The rest of the weekend was great too. We went to The Steeplechase horse race. The weather was BEAUTIFUL and the kids loved the races.

Brother made this picture of a paper horse that he took just so he could get this photo.

The hard part about attending this event was trying to enjoy it while pushing aside the feelings of guilt. Being surrounded by fancy people over-indulging in so many things (although this event does support Vandy Children's Hospital) while so many others from our community are still reeling and trying to put their lives back together after the horrible floods we experienced last week - does give you pause (whatever that means...seems an odd expression now that I write it). We have, of course, tried to help... we've donated money and supplies to friends and strangers affected by the flood, but it's pretty surreal to see life go on at the race track a mile away from where people were struck homeless last weekend.

We have talked to the kids a lot about what happened and, I think, walked the line of making them understand the seriousness of the situation without terrifying them and filling them with anxiety about rain, storms and natural disasters. As Brother was out of school ALL WEEK, due to the floods, I know he understands that it was a big deal. However, it really hit home on Friday when I took him with me to drop off some supplies in our old area of town that got hit especially hard. As we drove the half hour there, we were chatting and watching out the window, commenting sporadically when we saw a house with all their belongings on the side of the road - obviously affected by the flood. And then we turned down a street - one that we have driven on a hundred times on our way to t-ball practice or out for pizza - and EVERY home was destroyed. Beds, toys, clothes, furniture, appliances - all just piled on both sides of the road so that you feel like you're driving through a tunnel of sorts. At this point we were both quiet. The bags of "supplies" next to me seemed suddenly very small. Sigh. But - my hope is that the life experience for Brother (and me) wasn't small and that we will all continue to be aware, helpful and giving to those in need. And not just to flood victims. People surely show their strength and generosity during tragedies - and wouldn't it be great if we did this all the time?