Me and Ike - Part II

Part II - A Long Night
After the lights went out, I started lighting the strategically placed candles to insure at least some visibility in most rooms of the house. My eight year old grandson, the self-appointed man of the house, informed me that we needed to pray and had already gathered the other children and my friend into the living room. “Good idea,” I replied. “Let me light these candles first.” My daughter joined me in what soon became the candle ritual. As the week wore on, we quickly learned that it was easier to light all the candles in one place and then take them to their appointed spot. It saved on matches (and fingers – ouch!). We also learned that we didn’t need to light so many candles! By the time we got them all lit and placed, it was time to blow them out and go to sleep! Apparently, the young man of the house thought we were taking too long and repeated his request that we come into the living room to pray. Okay, okay, we’re coming! As soon as we were reverently seated (he was standing in front of the fireplace with his hands behind his back looking a bit like a preacher) he began a beautiful prayer. I was so impressed with and moved by his heartfelt requests for protection for our family, our house, our neighborhood, and all the people affected by the storm, especially those who were at that time being hammered along the coast. After he finished, we went around the room and allowed everyone to participate in expressing their concerns to God. Even the three year old joined us. I felt peaceful and tranquil. We were not afraid, just bummed that the television was out, which probably helped with keeping away the fear.

It occurred to me that we didn’t really have a safe room ready in case we had damage to the roof or windows so I cleared out the closet under the stairway. The only other window free room downstairs is a small guest bathroom off the kitchen. Upstairs wasn’t an option. We all agreed that downstairs was best. I was amazed at how much stuff was packed in that closet. After emptying it out, it looked like a hurricane had blown through the dining room! A big empty closet was exciting for the children. They immediately gathered quilts and pillows and begged to sleep in there. They even extended it to make a tent outside the door with the bar stools. The girls decided that the grandson would sleep in the tent part. Four kids in a closet meant that the peace and tranquility was about to end. After more than one argument, the older girls decided to sleep elsewhere and before too long they were all asleep.

The boy and the toddler - sleeping in the closet.

The eldest granddaughter alsleep under the breakfast bar.

Do you mind? I'm trying to sleep here! (Milo, the cat)

During the course of the night, I was able to talk to hubby on the other side of the world and to my eldest daughter in Dallas. The cordless phones had stopped working as soon as the electricity went out. The good old fashioned, plug into the wall, phone worked for a while but it, too, eventually went dead. The cell phone circuits became very busy and calling became difficult. Text messaging worked best, at least for a while. We could hear the wind and rain a little bit but it was surprisingly quiet in the house. Certainly not like I thought it should sound in the middle of a hurricane. The girls thought they heard a cat yowl outside but then thought it must have been the wind. It seemed safe enough to open the door and take a peek. It was much louder outside and the trees were whipping around. I had to insist that the door be closed. I sent a text message to hubby around 3am and told him I was going to try to get some rest. He told me, "I wish I were there with you. Take care. I'm praying and by the way, Happy Birthday!”

Darling Daughter brought a cake! Ahh, chocolate to relieve stress!
We played musical couches for a while but eventually settled in to try to get some sleep. We started hearing what sounded like limbs falling on the roof. After a particularly loud thump, my daughter said she hoped that wasn’t her car. I looked out of the uncovered, upper window in the entryway and had a moment of anxiety. Then my eyes caught a reflection from the candle on the fireplace. It was a cross. “Wow,” I thought and dozed off for what seemed like a few minutes but was really a few hours. The eye of the storm passed right over us around 6:30am shortly after I awoke. Dawn was about to break, revealing the damage outside. To be continued…..Sorry, but I have to do this a little bit at a time!