August 4, 2008
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All for a Table
After almost two months of cleanup duty, the house was halfway back to normal. When you hear about a flood on the news it’s shocking for a few minutes… Maybe a day, maybe a week. But you ‘ll forget about it soon. The victims don’t. I don’t think most people realize just how long it takes to rebuild your dreams and memories. Until now, I didn’t. The photos you thought were all safely in the attic turned out to be in your bottom dresser drawer and of course, the water found them. Your baby’s baptism outfit, once pure white now stained red and brown form silt and sewer water. It’s never really the same.
My family had been rebuilding their house for over eight weeks now. One thing after another struck: lousy contractors, false insurance promises, banks putting holds on checks. It had been a disaster. This weekend, my husband and kids headed back to Indiana to help with whatever rebuilding project we could do. The task this week was installing wood floors. We managed to get almost half of the first floor’s flooring down, meaning after two months that they could finally have a real living room, a real dining room and half of a bedroom. Up until this point, five people have been crammed into the 800 sq ft upstairs living space. All meals have been cooked outside on the grill with the exception of what could be cooked on the lonely butane burner they had set up on the garage’s work bench. With this much of the flooring down, a couch is now able to sit in the living room and a family table is back in the dining room. It took two months. Did you even remember we’d been in a flood?
After two months, we pulled the kitchen table out of the storage unit and set it up. My mother in law made jokes about it, but I knew she was ecstatic about the level of normalcy she’d attained. We ate pork chops (a la grill) and joked with each other for over an hour. We were a normal family again, eating off a real table. No longer did we sit upon folding chairs around a card table or on the floor. We had a real meal with real chairs, and it set a great vibe for the rest of the house.
Life ain’t so bad with a table. There’s great hope for the future.
Comments (13)
There’s not much I can say, but I’m happy to hear that things are beginning to return to normal. What’s important is that your family is safe and together.
We have a tendency to take things for granite and forget just how blessed we are until something major happens. The 7 ½ months Steve and I spent in Mississippi 9 days after Katrina put my world back into perceptive. Then just about the time I get comfortable again i.e. taking life for granite we went back for 3 months (it was a year later) and things were better but by no means normal for the people who live there. It will certainly open your eyes if you are willing to open your heart. I wish I was close enough to help. I have not forgotten your family was in that flood. They are in my prayers. Love you
It’s unfortunate that normalcy takes such a long time to come back after something so devastating. It sounds like you have a strong family and a lot of times, that’s what you need to get through the difficult times is to be together.
Yeah, must admit it was outta-sight-outta mind sort of thing. Good to hear things are starting to return back to normal for you and your family. Soon you’ll be slipping and slidding with white socks across wood floors again. To know that you can still joke about bodes well for the positiveness that abounds.
btw. I like this song, “The Remedy”
Your powerpuff girl songs rock.
I remembered. I prayed. I wish I could have done more. Maybe I can. I am about to head out of the house on my next month-long voyage. If I am in Indiana, I will let you know. I am pretty good with a hammer, and a chopsaw. Just, uh… don’t get too close to me if I have to hammer something. I am good, but those darn hammers, they just have a mind of their own…
Glad to hear that things are getting back to normal. Is the air still full of the muskiness that always follows a flood in farm country?
I wasn’t aware that your family was touched by the floods. I am happy things are getting back to normal. HUGS & blessings for your family!
Heyyyy!! How are you!! We haven’t talked about my breakup!!
I didn’t forget you had been in a flood. Yes, we do take things for granted…things that you listed.
I’m glad you’re life is getting back to normal. Normal is fantastic.
Have a great day!
There’s amazing strength in that and I commend you for it.
I just want you to know that we have never stopped praying for your in-laws. They are always in my thoughts. I am glad to see that they are rebuilding despite all the set backs. HUGS!!!!
PS. Whose kiddo is that? Looks extremely painful.
The kiddo from the other blog entry
I’m glad that things are slowly getting back to normal. I really hate that happened and no I had not forgotten. It is a horrible thing.