Starting Over After Harvey

I spent the weekend with Mom and Dad. Elaine and Stan had been there a few days earlier, and Dayle is still there.

Daddy told me he doesn’t feel like he’s home, and I can understand why—nothing is the same. His familiar things are gone, and with his recent partial hip replacement, he’s not mobile enough to do anything but sit and watch the goings-on around him. He wishes he were able to do something. But he’s not.

I know it rains on the just and the unjust, and I know Hurricane Harvey decimated thousands, but I remain overwhelmed when I think of my parents’ loss and the life-altering event that happened at this stage of their lives.

Unlike young people, who have strength, energy and time to bounce back and start over, Mom and Dad don’t have an abundance of strength, energy or time remaining. Yet, the rebooting must take place; the hard work must be done.

At Mother’s request, Dayle worked in Daddy’s office yesterday. At some point, I stepped in to see how things were going.

On the walls, she’d hung numerous certificates, letters and plaques that have been awarded to Daddy throughout his 70-plus years of ministry. His salvaged turntable sat on the floor, and one of his albums from years past was playing.

“This song is so beautiful,” Dayle said as I walked in, and when it finished, she played it again.

It was one of the many songs Daddy wrote, and as we listened to him singing in his signature strong voice, “When my race on this earth is finally run…”, we sat in silence and let the tears fall.

In the living room, Daddy slept in a chair, wishing his 90-year-old body was whole again. In the kitchen, Mother was doing her best at starting over.