It's June and the daylilies are blooming up a storm....they are blooming as if the storms never touched our home, our community, or Mount Hope. Such devastation...such pain...such sadness. yet after the storm comes the calm and the beauty of the daylilies.

April 27, 2011 was a dreadful day. It started out all out of wack. School was delayed 2 hours. Daddy was at work of course but on this particular day I was off. Typically I would have been working, but I had taken the day off. I sent you boys to school because as usual, myself and many others in the community underestimated the seriousness of the instability in our atmosphere. I sent you to school because I wanted to teach an important life lesson to you boys.... I wanted to stress work ethic and responsibility..I wanted to make a small decision that would teach each of you how to be responsible young men... I sent you to school because I wanted to teach you that life goes on and people depend on us to back our ears and go..... i sent you on. we all did. After all, I knew I would be home if the weather took a turn for the worse. I knew I could be there to get you right away. I relied on the school system to release school once the weather said we should. I feel so bad about it now looking back. Why did I do that? It could have been bad...it really could have been bad!.....not that it wasn't devastating enough. I took a chance...and most of us were fortunate...God protected our children...just as he always does. Mount Hope barely survived perish that day...thousands all over the state barely survived perish. Many didn't survive and the hole they left behind will forever be there. Now, those of us that were left behind must ask ourselves..."what can I do today to make my existence and survival here matter?" ....."How can I give more than I take?" I ask you today lord 2 years later as i can only now finally compose myself enough to finish this post....."How can I give more than I take?"