I think I will always have a vivid memory of when Hurricane Harvey flooded our home. We had the day off because the storm was heading our direction, but we weren’t too worried- it looked minimal at best. I spent my day off from school perfecting a picture gallery wall in our home. My husband took it easy playing with our girls.
The day was pretty uneventful- until about 8pm. That is when tornado warnings started going off on our phones. We began gathering what we would need for the night and decided we would sleep as a family in a closet under the stairs just to be safe. None of us were looking forward to cramming into that tiny space, so as the warnings would subside, we would come back out into the living room to watch Disney movies. My girls were 10 mos and 2 years at the time. My toddler was obsessed with the weather, so we periodically would check the rain outside.
Around midnight, we had just finished prepping our tornado shelter for the night with the kids in the closet under the stairs, when my two-year-old asked to see the rain one last time before we hunkered down in our shelter to go to bed. We went to the front door, and it was less than an inch from coming in, by the time we made it to the garage, the water started pouring in from every angle into our home. Not knowing if it was from the rain or if the bayou behind our house had suddenly jumped its banks, we grabbed the girls and an ax and ran upstairs. We didn’t know how high the water would get, but we had seen what had happened in Katrina and if the water happened to get that high, the ax would get us out onto the roof. We put the girls into the crib upstairs and I gave our two-year-old a flashlight and told her they were pirates, and the crib was their ship- we were having an adventure, as I tried not to show the utter panic I was feeling.
My husband and I raced back down the stairs so he could wade out into the waters to kill the power to the house to make sure we didn’t get electrocuted. Our stuff began floating around downstairs. We saved as much food as we could, tossing it up the stairs & grabbed a box of family photos. We took turns comforting our girls who were frightened as the storm continued, the waters rising downstairs in the dark. It was an eerie night… no sleep… tons of water, and even more fear…
Then the sun rose. As the sun always does- but it felt different. It shed light on what we would face for the next 15 months as we would muck out, move from place to place (7 moves in total), deal with a school that had flooded, students who had lost their homes, a community that was ravaged by the water, find strength to rebuild, and eventually move back home.
So why am I telling you this???
The 5th anniversary of the day Harvey flooded our home and our lives is coming up soon and I have been reflecting a LOT on the lessons I’ve learned from that experience. If you know me personally, you know I have spoken at great length about the personal lessons, trials, and blessings that Harvey brought me- but recently I have been thinking more about the lessons I have garnered from that experience as an educator.
Lesson #1: BE PREPARED FOR THE UNKNOWN
I thought we were prepared for the storm- we had snacks, we had a 72-hour kit, we made a tornado shelter, we were listening to the weather radio in our closet under the stairs….
How often do we start our year thinking- “This is the year! I have it all figured out! I have set up systems and routines! This will be my BEST YEAR YET!” only to have something unexpected occur- maybe a freak natural disaster, maybe a pandemic, or maybe just a student that pushes us to the brink! It is hard to be prepared for the unknown- we can’t always control what happens to us- but we CAN control our reaction. Think now about how you handle stressors that come your way. Be ready to jump into action if things don’t go the way you are expecting in your classroom.
Lesson #2 MUCK OUT
For those who may not know what that means- in the South that means tearing out EVERYTHING that was damaged by the water- all of your possessions, all of the drywall, insulation, EVERYTHING- because if you don’t the MOLD sets in fast! That picture is about 80% of what we owned when we were flooded, and it was all on our front lawn- mucking out sucks! It is a messy process, and it is HARD- because you are throwing out things that you once loved, things that matter to you, but are no longer able to serve you.
I encourage you to take the time now before schools starts to MUCK OUT. Look back through your plans, past lessons, your systems and routines and throw out anything that is no longer serving you. Don’t just stick with it because it’s what you’ve ALWAYS done, it will grow mold. It will be hard- I know you LOVE some of those lessons and activities and routines- but I also know you know which ones are no longer having the impact they once did… muck them out. I promise new and better things are on the horizon…
Lesson #3: YOU CAN’T HAVE RAINBOWS WITHOUT SOME RAIN
So, the fifteen months following Harvey were extremely trying for our family. We moved SEVEN TIMES as they rebuilt our home (hotels, rentals, friends’ couches). My kids had terrible health issues and hospitalizations because of the mold in our area, demands at home and work were so overwhelming that I eventually decided to step back for a while from my position as an administrator so I could work to get us back home. That being said- all of that rain brought some rainbows I could’ve never imagined- I got to be at home with my babies (and eventually ended up adding a third to our mix), I started my TPT store, The Thoughtful Educator and got to use my passion for creating resources for other teachers while still be able to raise my children and REBUILD to get us home.
You will face some RAIN in your teaching career. Things will happen that will catch you off guard, that will push you to the brink- but know that those dark times that push us out of our comfort zones, are also what helps us to GROW. All of that rain brings RAINBOWS. You just have to endure the storm
I know this sounds crazy- but five years later? I am really grateful for Hurricane Harvey.
I hope that as you face the storms that come in your teaching career, that you will one day look back and be grateful for the flood waters. That you will see the tremendous growth personally and professionally from enduring and overcoming those experiences. May you always see the rainbows that come into your life.
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