The next few days were an emotional rollercoaster as more and more pictures were posted on Facebook. My first instinct was to go fix it. That would not be a logical idea. There was nowhere to stay. The city was on lock down. The roads could not be accessed even if the city wasn’t on lock down.
Callaway and Mexico Beach took the brunt of the storm. Mexico Beach, the beach that everyone referred to as the beach to escape the crowds and enjoy a relaxing day, was gone. Homes were leveled as if there were never any homes there to begin with. People were trapped in their collapsed homes. The reports were awful. Then there was the little town of Lynn Haven, led by a distant cousin of mine, Mayor Margo Anderson. That’s were the majority of my friends lived and where I lived for many, many years. The pictures poured in and so did my tears. These are my people. This is my hometown. I don’t recognize it.
War zone. That analogy would be used more times than you can imagine. This county looks like a war zone. My daughter said it looks like the zombie apocalypse minus the zombies. The night time brought complete darkness. The daylight brought the harsh reality of things. A link was provided that shows an overhead view of the destruction. That was hard to look at. My dad’s idea of keeping things on the down low came to a grinding haul when I zoomed in to see his overhead shot of his home and I could see huge holes in the roof. Yeah Dad, you’re not fooling me now. You couldn’t see the top of my daughter’s home because it was covered in trees. I scanned around to other areas that I was familiar with and just seeing the aerial view was like a punch in the gut. A view from above of the war zone.
By the second and third day my daughter and family were floating around from house to house just trying to find somewhere safe to sleep. Our son was with his mom and step dad safely in Jacksonville, FL with their family. One less worry for me and his dad. My youngest daughter, the one who left because she was in the first evacuation zone, was safe back at her condo as the beach suffered very minimal damage compared to the inland areas. My dad and family were fortunate enough to have an RV on their property so they had somewhere safe, secure, and dry to stay. That RV, now 17 days later, has become their biggest blessing through this whole ordeal.
My daughter’s house was destroyed. Every tall, beautiful, historic pine tree in their yard fell on their house. Had they stayed in their home that day, they may not have survived. That, my friends, still causes the biggest lump in my throat. They lost everything. No room was spared. Insulation, water, and tree limbs consumed each room. I started a gofundme campaign to help get them some much needed financial assistance and they were blessed with very generous donations and they’re so grateful for the help. After a few days they were able to secure housing at a condo on the beach. I could FINALLY rest easy. All of my baby birds were safe and secure in their nests.
Now to begin the next phase of this journey…and don’t think for a hot minute that this Mama Bear has let up on the prayers. Our faith is what is seeing us through.
A Southern Girl's Way Of Life 