The Sudden Flood

I didn't cry until this morning. I got up and went to the kitchen in my usual routine, got my drink of water and turned go look at my Christmas tree and it hit me. There under my Christmas tree was our church's beautiful nativity figures. The wise men bowing under my tree, baby Jesus nestled all snug against his mother Mary. And I teared up.

Yesterday, Daughter L went to clean the church to get it ready for our Christmas Dinner and Sing that will be this coming Sunday. And she noticed, as she walked up to the front door, that there was what she described as "a river of water" coming out from under the doors! "How strange," she thought and opened the door. Out poured a flood of water that washed over and covered her feet. The water poured on and on because the whole, entire church was filled with ankle deep water. I got a frantic phone call, "Mom! There's a river of water pouring out of the church! It's flooded!" I have to admit, even at that moment my mind went to the song, "There is a River". Even as I write this I'm not sure if it was poetry or hysterics. As I got the story from her I ran and got my car keys, Son J and out the door we flew.

Heading to the church just a few miles away every car in front of me was going about 15 miles slower than the speed limit. I think that's a hallmark in situations like this. But finally I got there, it's pouring rain and there's my bedraggled daughter out front of the church and sure enough, there's the river of water still pouring out the open front door. Son Th was there also, poor man! He had got Daughter L's call too, but he was home that day, in bed, doubled up with the stomach flu. But now, there my brave man was trying to stop the flood of water flowing on and on.

The first thing I heard was water rushing. Rushing everywhere around me. I peered in through the front door and water was cascading down from the ceiling just inside the door and the ceiling was coming away in places and hanging down. Looking toward the men's bathroom door I could see in just a little bit and what I saw was amazing. Again, water showering down and chunks of insulation and plaster everywhere. Quickly I turned away because Son Th was still trying to turn the water off at the water main. And now I'm starting to think about the electricity! Water and electricity do not mix and my daughter had just walked up to a building full of water AND electricity! Oh and by the way, I was now standing in that same water. But there was no place to not stand in water because I then noticed that around the entire church yard there was water. The water must have been flooding for some time, there was water out all the way into the neighbors' backyards! My brain was trying to comprehend all this and by this time Son J had taken off his shoes and socks and had rolled up his pants to wade out to the water main to help his brother figure out how to shut off the water. Finally a city worker pulled up in front of the church and helped turn off the main pipe.

Gradually the water slowed and the torrent from the ceiling lessened. Our church's heating and cooling unit uses water to heat and cool with. It's up in our attic. Last week we had the unit checked and I don't know still how or what happened up there, but the water was all coming from up in the attic of our sweet little church that to me now looked destroyed. At last, my husband pulled into the driveway and put on his boots, went into the church and turned off the power. We at least were all now safe from electrical shock. But all of a sudden there was a crash. A big chunk of the ceiling had fallen in! I remembered then that I had my phone that I could take pictures with and so I started taking pictures. Most of them are a little fuzzy because I was shaking with shock, cold and wetness. It was, of course, pouring rain outside still!

I had to leave to go to the library to work after that. It was so hard to drive away. My mind was filled with so many questions. How could this happen? What will we do now? Where will we have church? When can we be happy in our little building again? And then thought hit me; it's just the building. The building might be devastated, but our real church; the people, are safe and we are fine. All will be well.

Sidenote: Thank the Lord for small mercies. Both Sis. D and I were so happy to know that our precious nativity figures had been lovingly placed up on a table last Sunday night in preparation for the church sing. If not for that, our little baby Jesus would have been found floating around the building and we would have had to rename him Moses instead!