#abflood

There is so much victory for our little family in this picture!  This is Hudson's new work station for homeschooling, it is also the first room in our house to be done, like 100% done and functioning, after 2 yrs that is a HUGE victory for us!  

Many of you might wonder what on earth we are doing, why we aren't as available as we like to be, or if we are just too busy.....in a way yes we are, but trust me we are busy creating a home.  We are aware that this project can take us away from peaceful, quality time together, but that is exactly what we are working toward within our four walls, a place of peace and quality.  Firstly for our kids, secondly for our friends!

Thank you for being patient and prayerful towards us.  We will emerge from this season soon I hope.

We have been so honored to have Lorna Dueck and Context TV sharing our story via my blog this summer.  Did you know Lorna came to visit High River in September with a film crew, watch her amazing episode here!!

Lorna is a talented and comforting soul with incredibly sincerity, we appreciate you Lorna!  We have realized how blessed we truly are, as Lorna is just one of the many folks worldwide who have encouraged us, prayed for us and lent us a hand.  We are so grateful and humbled by your love!  THANK YOU!

We hope to be getting power at the house today or tomorrow, which means our main floor renovations will begin this month.  Our hope is to complete the main floor work by Feb/March and move into our home!  

Many of you have asked how/when you can help, thank you!  We are pretty much working at the house everyday and would love your company!  We are currently looking for folks with experience in electrical, plumbing, framing or drywalling to come spend a day with Gary.  If you are interested please feel free to contact us to arrange a time to come.

Karla - [email protected] Gary - [email protected]

Last Friday was 3 months since the flood, let me tell you that was a sobering realization.  3 months since our world was turned upside down and we are barely inches further along in our recovery process.  It is a brutal and disheartening reality to note that nothing has physically changed with our home since mid July; since it has been cleaned and sanitized.

Our family, however, the human beings I love, have endured so many changes in this last 3 months; moving two times, trying to earn enough money to cover two months of being out of work and now paying two sets of household bills, preparing for a baby, and the incessant dead-end phone calls and unanswered questions about how to fix our home.

It is a strange and unnerving parallel to be dealing with a mountain of administrative and logistical demands, yet our home sits untouched, these are opposite forces slowly tearing us at the seams.  Let me tell you the day we start fixing something in that home will feel like breakthrough!

I wake up every morning hopeful that today will be the day we gain back some confidence that this nightmare is almost over, but somehow every evening I am more disappointed and tired of waiting.  Every phone call seems to either go unanswered for weeks or add a more worries and stress to the plate.  

Gary is doing an incredible job keeping his cool and I am so impressed by his patience and wisdom in this time.  He is also working very hard to earn money for us and is physically more drained than I ever remember seeing him in our 12 yrs together.  Oh and then we are adding a newborn to this mess, Lord have mercy, not just in the morning but every second of these days.

And so High River goes on trying to rebuild while being pressed into the realities of returning to living life.  People still need furnaces and hot water tanks, rental properties are nowhere to be found, there is unemployment and an aching tiredness that may start festering into rage, all our fuses are short.  

I still love this town and I am proud of it!  We are pushing back against the daily disappointments, unanswered phone calls and confusion surrounding our situations.  We are gathering around potlucks and concerts and community events, and soon one-by-one we will return home, and gather around dinner tables once again.

Friends!  It has been nearly 3 months since the flood, and so many of us are still displaced and really starting to feel the financial and emotional crunch of this disaster.  I have noticed how re-entering the routines of September have caused alot of us to really notice how tired we are, it is an interesting phenomenon.

I have also notice that many of my friends in town (whether they can truly afford it or not) have decided to move forward to fix their homes without any help from their insurance or the DRP (Disaster Relief Program).  This too is interesting, and Gary and I have found ourselves asking some similar questions like:

What can we afford when it coms to fixing our home? Is waiting for a commitment from the government a good strategy/option? Is living in a condo paying two monthly housing fees ultimately better or worse than investing in fixing our home now? What affect will winter have on our family and our purchased home?

I believe wrestling with these questions has really added to our sense of tiredness; truly how many of us thought we would have received direction and financial aid by now, 3 months out?  If we linger on the promises of our governement leaders or any other system we WILL be disappointed.  Our hope is not in them, or their money, but in our faith and in our ability to make wise choices for our family and to take up those responsibilities with courage and heart.

So the question of faith?  I am not sure what your faith is in, but I would dare you to ask yourself this question - What is the PROMISE for your life and over your family?  Dig down and discover who you are, or who you are meant to be, why do you live in High River, why are you at your job, married to your spouse etc.  Once we anchor to these truths no flood, sickness, finances, disappointments or calamity can erode the foundational truths of who you are!

Gary and I are pioneers, we know (and sometimes loathe) this truth.  We tend to see the horizons of the future a little better than the currents of the now, so we lean into our natural and spiritual families to help us remember who we are.  Our promise is this - to chose the right thing now, even if it is the harder thing.  We choose to sow for the future, and trust how that affects the now.  

Sometimes this promise means we must have faith and patience when our investments take a little longer to be fruitful, but we believe!  We want to be a family of faith and courage, but we too get tired.  We love High River and are proud of how resilient and patient you are trying to be.  Hang in there and come over to our house, we will listen to your story, it is beautiful and maybe together we can unearth your promise!!

As we enter the second month of being displaced we must move from being a flood victim to a flood overcomer, and I think the best action is thankfulness!  This blog is my attempt to document and publicly thank so many of you who have helped us in our most desperate time of need!  I am sure to forget someone, so please forgive me :)

For those of you who have shared concern and your time and space thank you!  Many of you have cleaned our home, yard and RV, watched Hudson, sent money, donated items, hosted us, our trailer and our dog Sam, endured emotional ups and downs, cried with us and entertained us!  Thank you a million times over for giving so graciously to a burnt out, frustrated, exhausted and afraid family.  We can only hope to repay you in the future.

Some special thanks to:

Our moms and dads, siblings and extended families.  You have been the first line of defense and a safe place for us.

Our extended friends and spiritual family, you have carried us with your words and prayers, we miss you!  Especially Joanne + Theo who have kept me afloat and to my Colorado (and TX, WI, KS etc) friends you are so beautiful, we love and appreciate you!

Our High River friends, how you have helped out of a place of great lack and uncertainty, your resilience is astounding!

Special thanks to The Elliots, The Vaille-Muirs, The Blackmers, Jodi+Brendon, Sharon, Chad, The Pawlitzkis, Yvonne + Rick, Ashlee + Rob, The Walkers, The Smiths, Sandra, Jim, Angela and all the other High Riverites I've missed.

Thanks to Shauna + Mark for hosting us on your property, we loved our time with you!  Thank you for the help with the bobcat and Sam as well, we are so grateful for your generosity.

Thank you to the High River Fire Dept. who has been a source of strength and practical help in this time, we are so excited to be a part of your team!  

Special thanks to the folks who selflessly hand clean our sewage-filled basement, strangers and firemen from the Calgary Fire Dept, we send blessings your way!  

Thank you to Caleb for cutting down that massive lilac tree too!

Thank you to Neighbor Link who refilled our tanks with food, toiletries and toys immediately following the flood.  

Thank you to Chasin' Tails for loving Sam and taking care of him for us the week after the flood!

Special thank you for the donations of money and tools from the following folks as well!  My Aunties and Baba,  The Gillespies, Urban Bridge Church, HCM, Dwight Listmayer, Julie Rohr, The Thorntons, The O'Hairs, Robyn Mchugh, Amber Epp, the Lauries, Rick Duncan, the Marushys, Lisa's your parents and brother, Jill Righton, and I am POSITIVE their are more of you I have missed.

Thank you to the folks at Partick Artists who have helped me reschedule shows and have shown me abundant grace in this and previous seasons of trial, I love being on your team!

Special thanks to Lorna Dueck who has adopted our family and continues to share our story nationwide on Context!  We also have felt the love from CKUA (Grant + Baba), CBC (Katherine Duncan) and other media outlets interested in our story.

Also thank you to the folks at DRP, Intact Insurance, the Town of High River and MLA Rick Fraser who have taken an interest in our story and are working hard to help us resolve house problems! 

We are also so grateful for the Salvation Army Church in High River, the Red Cross and the agencies at the Welcome Center who are helping us get back on our feet.  Keep up the amazing work!

There are so many of you who have offered to take care of Hudson, sent love and prayers and built up a tide of gratitude in our hearts.  We appreciate everything so so so much!  THANK YOU!