My Hope

  Here's the oak that fell right next to the house.  You can see the size of the roots compared to Victoria.   Crisis We feel like over the past week and a half we’ve had a very small glimpse into what so many people experience worldwide on a daily basis.    Except we didn’t.    As we sat inside with the winds whirling around we jumped up every time we heard a loud crash to see where the next tree had fallen… but we didn’t fear bombs leaving a shell of our home.    We spent a week trying to make things work with limited electricity… but we still had plenty of food in the pantry and a generator to run the fridge.    We had to ration water… but only for flushing the toilets.    We walked out the next day to survey the damage… but overall as powerful as the storm was, lives were spared.      I got a text after the storm passed asking if we could take a package to Lebanon and someone would try to get it over to ...

  We’re getting really close to being able to buy tickets and head over!!!    As our time here is quickly coming to a close, we’ve been spending time with friends and family.    The girls and I went on a trip with my parents to see my brother and sister-in-law recently and I’m thankful we got to see them and other friends and family along the way.     On our way back, we were planning on stopping at a park outside to break up the trip.    When the weather forecasted storms and our windshield wipers confirmed them, we decided to change our plans.    The girls still needed a break from the car and we thought the Civil Rights Museum in Birmingham might be the place to go.    It brought me both hope and heartbreak.      This monument was for the children's march after which thousands of children were thrown in jail. I watched more of my girls’ innocence chipped away as we went through the exhibits.  ...