Wow!

We weren't quite sure what we would find when we got back to Franklin last night.  It was very surreal.  For some reason, I am not a fan of that word, but it seems to be the best fit for our situation.  We had spent the weekend in east Tennessee in Pigeon Forge with our friends and our weather was absolutely gorgeous the entire time.  It was hard to believe that just a few hours away our town was being pelted with non-stop rain and the Harpeth River was rising up, up, up and flooding our town.  When we called friends in Franklin to check the weather situation on Sunday, we were told the same thing by almost everyone, "Stay where you are.  Don't come back to this."

Well, we did come back, and as I said, we weren't sure what to expect or what to prepare for.  Which also meant that we had a five and a half-year old that we also needed to prepare.  And Caleb had lots of questions.  He has never been one to be satified with a "blow off" answer, so we have never given him one.
He couldn't understand why God would let things like floods happen that could hurt people.  Eric and I did our best to explain in five-year old terms that we can't always understand why God allows things to happen, but even though he allows things that may cause suffering and hardship, it is because He has a bigger plan and a greater good will come from the struggle.  That is a pretty hard concept for a thirty-two year old to comprehend, much less a five-year old mind.  My prayer is that God will fill in the gaps where our explanation was inadequate and that Caleb will keep asking those questions and understand that in God's sovereignty, He is so good.

Luckily, we were able to get in contact with a neighbor who said the streets to our house were open and safe and that she had had no flooding in her home.  That made us feel a bit more at ease.  Our home is in an area of higher elevation and not on the Harpeth, but with the reports we were hearing, we didn't want to take anything for granted.  We also called the Franklin Police Department and were informed that our exit was open, but that we might get pulled over because a curfew was in affect for the entire city.  We decided to chance it.  We had some generous offers of friends to let us bunk in with them for the night, but as anyone knows after a few nights away from home, you just want to get back to your own bed.  And in this situation, we wanted to make sure our beds were not floating around our townhouse.

We did have to take I-840 to avoid Nashville, since we had been told the interstates leading into the city had been closed.  But it didn't seem to add too much time on to our drive.  We safely made it home without incident or getting a citation for breaking curfew.  And to our delight and praise, we had no damage or water from the flooding.

Others were not as fortunate.  And those are the people we are thinking about today and praying for.  When we were on our way home yesterday, my sister called to inform me that not only were areas of Nashville and Franklin under water, but so was our hometown of Liberty in Kentucky!  When we got home and viewed the pictures for the first time of both the town we live in now and the town I grew up in underwater, it was....I don't know...surreal. creepy. sad.

The images that have struck me the most are the rescue pictures, the entire streets turned into lakes, and these two shots...

The first one is Gateway Park in Liberty.  It is the park where I grew up playing.  I played T-ball and softball there and spent much of my summers there when I was younger.

The second one is Pinkerton Park in Franklin.  It is the park where my boys have played since birth.  It is about five minutes from our home, and we have spent countless hours there.  Some days it has been my sanity.  We have hiked the trail behind the park many, many times, have had parties there, and I have spent many hours walking the track around that beautiful park.

I did see some pictures today and most of the water at Gateway has receeded.  I have seen that park flooded before; It has just never been this severe. I am not sure what the damage is, but most of the playground structures are still standing.  The ball fields may be a different story.

We drove by Pinkerton today and is still remains a huge lake.  Not much has changed there.  It makes me sad.  I am sure it will be restored and everything there is replaceable, but it will be a while before things are back to normal there. 

I am not sure why my heart is so sad about the parks. Maybe it is because there is something so peaceful about going to the park or just knowing it is right down the road.  Maybe I know what simple joy a trip to the park brings to little ones.  And as an adult, to big ones, too.  I think it makes me realize how I have taken it for granted that we can just hop in the car and be at the park in five minutes and within a matter of an afternoon, that can be taken away.   And it also makes me realize that when we left on Friday, we just took for granted that our home would still be here when we got back on Sunday.  

In God's grace, ours was.  Others were not so fortunate.  Again, those are the people I am thinking and praying for today.  They probably did not have a plan.  They probably have absolutely no idea what to do now.  That is what I was thinking for us, as we were driving home and didn't really know what to expect.  Beyond basic survival/evacuation measures, we do not have a plan for a catastrophe like a flood or tornado.  We wouldn't have known where to begin, if we had walked into two feet of water on our first floor last night. 

But there are a few things I know are true, no matter what.  And that is what gives me rest in situations where the unthinkable happens.

God will provide strength and help: "So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand." Isaiah 41:10


God will provide wisdom: "If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him." James 1:5

God will provide peace:  "Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything, by prayer and petition, with thanksgiving, present your requests to God. And the peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus."  Phil. 4:6-7

Eric went into work today at noon. The Cumberland River, which flows through downtown Nashville, crested this morning, so there is flooding that extends up to Third Avenue (as of now). Eric's office is on 4th Avenue and so far, there is no damage there. We were blessed to wake up to a beautiful day. It is very warm and the sun is shining bright. What a contrast to the scene on Saturday and Sunday. The roads are passable in Liberty now and Franklin will hopefully begin to dry up soon. Our part of town is fully functional and we drove through downtown Franklin this morning and it looked like most of the businesses were open. We were able to explain to Caleb that even though there was a lot of damage, that God had allowed the rains to stop and if that had not happened then much more damage could have occured.  God is sovereign and God is good.


My heart goes out to the people who have been most affected in the Nashville/Franklin/Bellevue areas and my hometown of Liberty, KY and other parts of my homestate that were hit,  by loss of home, business, or loved one (considering the circumstances, there have surprisingly been few lives lost.  Praise the Lord). I pray for strength, wisdom, and most of all, peace, as they clean up and then rebuild.

And the parks.  My heart goes out to the parks, too.

Here is a link to the Tennessean where is a slideshow of area flooding and rescue efforts photos: Nashville/Franklin area flood pictures

The playground behind the school Caleb will attend in the fall:

Some pictures of my hometown yesterday:

Looking to the south on Hwy. 127

Looking to the north on Hwy 127