Today is September 11, a day of perpetual mourning in America for all of the innocent lives we lost to senseless terrorist attacks 16 years ago. It is a day of remembrance, and ceremonies across America commemorated those civilians lost and those brave first responders who gave their lives trying to help.
Yet today also was a day of good news for us. We learned, first of all, that our nephew and his wife were safe, having lost just a few shingles from the roof of their house. We learned that our church members and pastor and his family also were safe. Apparently our aging church withstood the winds and the rains and came out intact. Some of that is due to the fact that the storm, at the last minute, drifted east, sparing our area from the worst of the rains and the winds. Some of that is due to the architecture of the church being low and having the buildings protect one another from the way they are configured. And part of that is because people prayed for deliverance, and they were granted that grace.
We learned that our sister-in-law's sister, who fled Naples and drove north, was safe. The fate of her home is still unknown, but we know that she was out of harm's way when the winds and the water invaded her city.
We learned, thankfully, that the time and money we spent putting in hurricane resistant windows, doors, garage doors, and roofing materials paid us back in full. We reportedly have no damage to our house, and even the vinyl fence (complete with its concreted-in posts) remains standing. We are so relieved to hear that our home and property are intact.
Sadly, we also learned that our neighbor who has been watching our home for us did not fair as well. She had a huge back porch with jalousy windows that worried her. Thankfully, she took shelter with a neighbor to the north, only to return today to find that her porch was totally gone. She said that she could not even find the pieces of it in the neighborhood. When the porch blew off, it also took part of her roof on the house, so she had to scramble today to try to get tarps on the roof and across the back to protect the interior of her house. We have not heard from her again, but I have thought of her often today and pray that she was about to secure her property. If we had been there, we gladly would have helped her tarp the house to keep it safe.
Yesterday, Florida took the worst weather beating of the last 96 years, and recovery in some parts of it will take months. Power is still out in over half the state; crews may need days if not weeks to get it all functional again. No power is all right with us as long as the house stays enclosed. With no one going in or out, the air conditioned, dry interior air will stay somewhat cool and dry, so we are not worried. When power is restored, the air conditioner should start again with no trouble.
Now the healing begins. Yes, we probably will get a $600 bill from our insurance company to help with the claims from people who have lost everything. Somehow, that seems a small price to pay. Our preparation was worth the time and expense to keep our property safe. We are fortunate that we do not have to travel down to Florida to take care of downed trees or missing roofs. We are grateful that we did not lose any family members or friends. We will stay here, out of the way for now, to let Rick's hand and our adopted state both begin the healing process.
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