July 9, 2025
In the darkness the water rose, so fast and so deadly.
A lethal combination of raging river fed by the torrential downpour of rain
became a nightmare the likes of which no one ever could have anticipated. Through
the darkness came agonizing cries for rescue, pleas for someone, anyone, to
help. One could not see those who cried out in terror and desperation. Once
could only hear them.
Then came the daylight. The waters stopped rising and
began to recede, leaving in their wake utter devastation. So many people dead,
and so many more people missing.
Texas is a beautiful state. We’ve been there more than
to any other state in the U. S. My publisher is in Austin, and I have visited
her there. We’ve stayed days and nights in Houston and Waco and Dallas and San
Antonio. We have good friends in the San Antonio area, whom we have visited
several times—once I traveled there on my own, to stay for an entire week, just
myself and my friend and her family. One of only three trips I have taken on my
own. During the times when David and I traveled there together, we enjoyed
seeing as much of the area and meeting as many of the people as we could.
We’ve toured the Hill Country and seen those beautiful
rivers up close. Visiting the towns, the history, and the countryside itself, remain
such joyful memories for us both. The people we met were welcoming and
gracious. Truly, as much as anywhere can be, that part of Texas is God’s
country.
Those same good people are in shock today, the shock
of having their lives suddenly destroyed. Some have lost every material thing
they ever owned. Some are now homeless. And some are grieving the loss of their
daughters and their sons, their grandchildren and their parents and their
grandparents.
Loved ones who were there mere hours before are abruptly
and horribly gone.
A few families have lost more than one child; and some
survivors have lost their entire families.
The flooding that came on the very eve of Independence
Day was a terrible, terrible thing. I’m an author, but I don’t have any words
that can really make a difference at a time like this. I don’t honestly know if
anyone does. You can’t make sense of it. You can only struggle to come to terms
with the weight of it.
There are times we are left to bear burdens that seem
utterly unbearable, and we wonder how in God’s name we can manage to do so.
But we can manage, in God’s name. And we do so one
moment at a time.
Times are tough for everyone right now. Money isn’t
everything, but money is necessary and certainly does help. Because money is
needed to rebuild, to begin again, and to care for the thousands of needs both
great and small in the aftermath of such unimaginable loss.
Times are tough for everyone right now, but here’s an
amazing fact: if everyone gave whatever they could, even just five
dollars, or three, or one, well that would add up to a whole lot of money.
If you don’t know to whom to give your five or three
or one dollar, the American Red Cross is a trustworthy agent. And a little
research with the help of your internet search engine will provide you with
other worthy candidates for your donations.
There’s always a lot of derision in the aftermath of
disasters directed toward the offering of “thoughts and prayers”. But I believe
in them both. I believe that when you say or think positive things, that
positivity is amplified. And as for prayers? Prayers, offered in good faith,
and from the heart are the most powerful force known to humankind. Don’t shy
away from using either of those precious tools as a response to this dire
situation.
I hope, for a little while at least, we can let go of
our tribalism and our animosities and offer whatever we can that is good and
kind and loving to our fellow human beings whose hearts have been shattered. We
can always—and likely will—go back to our petty sniping, later.
But for now, there are many who are wounded and in
need of our care. Let that be our focus.
Love,
Morgan
http://www.bookstrand.com/morgan-ashbury
No comments:
Post a Comment