Oh my, oh my....a lot to say

Man, what a month so far. I left my home early Sunday May 2nd to go to my church, only to be evacuated because of the flooding sweeping across parts of Nashville. My dear friend Bill Harrell and I were together 12 hours in his car, going from place to place, at one time a hill top because we got caught in a pretty scary downpour. I stayed with my best friend until Tuesday morning, because things were virtually waterlocked around her neighborhood.

I came home to my little abode, and then reality set in, as I sat alone on my couch and watched the news. Being a South Carolina girl, I had been through a hurricane. I know what that is, it comes, rips up, and leaves. Although there are similarities, a flood is very different. You have to wait on the water to leave. And it took a while, it STILL is taking a while. I sat there helpless, and scared, I live by myself, and sometimes, you have those moments that you think "I am all alone". But we really are never alone, unless we choose that.

I live about 30 minutes from the Bellevue area, which is where I go to church, and where I was stuck, and it was one of the hardest hit. Massive volunteering efforts had started that week, so I put on my duck boots (any good Southerner will know what those are) and went to Bellevue. I pulled sheetrock with strangers, cleaned out flooded basements, ate lunch prepared by insurance companies that set up stations, and literally bathed in the flood of goodwill and love that is NASHVILLE. I will always be a South Carolinian, but this is my home now. This beautiful state and city has made me understand why Tennessee is the Volunteer State.

It is SO sad, people have lost everything....except for their resolve. But it is also so beautiful in it's brokenness. I have had the opportunity to work with Soles4Souls and give shoes away to flood victims as well. WE have given shoes to people who have cleaned out their shoe closets for us in the past, and they humbly came because they have nothing left. I drove downtown today to deliver a pair of work boots to Eric, who has been doing reconstruction and clean up downtown in GALOSHES....freaking galoshes!!!!! His smile today and hug made my heart SOAR.

There is still SO much devastation and so much to be done. People need the simplest things, groceries, toiletries, your time, manual labor, a shoulder, an ear, a movie night to get their mind off of what they have been through.

I am so thankful that my home is OK. But my heart isn't.....God has grabbed my heart and squeezed it hard with this. Things are things, they are reminders of our past, but they can replaced. People can't, relationships can't, and these are what matter most. Sacrificing our time and resources will always bless us! Even if we feel we don't have it to give, give on the faith that it will be provided and IT WILL!!

I love you, Nashville. You have inspired me, and changed me.