Light

I am so tired that I should really be asleep, but since I go in an hour later tomorrow I can justify staying up a little later. My house is a mess and I have piles of laundry, but I've barely been home long enough to tackle my chores.

I work for a financial institution and we finally re-opened for business on Monday morning. I left early, hoping to find a cup of coffee along the way, but the fast food restaurants were still closed. Thankfully, I had a cup when I got to work and immediately started cleaning out the refrigerator in our break room. I was happy to return to a sense of normalcy. We were busy, as our customers lined up to get cash. We had been closed for four days and many people didn't have access to cash and with no power, even debit cards were useless. People were extraordinarily patient and grateful. We heard their storm stories and are still hearing them. I think I have teared up more than once or twice a day since the beginning of the week. As of right now there have been 39 counties in Alabama designated as disaster areas. Alabama only has 67 counties, so more than half of the state was affected. It will take years to recover.

I drove home on Monday evening. Still in the dark. Since I needed a shower, I grabbed a few things and spent the night at my older daughter's house. My pregnant daughter got her power back...for one hour. The transformer blew and once more they were in the dark. They went to her in-laws. Luckily the power came back on by Tuesday of this week. Just in time. My newest granddaughter made her entrance into this world on Tuesday evening, all 7 lbs. 10 oz.  Her middle name is "Dawn", a perfect fit. After the darkness, comes the dawn.

I came home at midnight, happy to see my front porch light on, and happy to have another bright light in my life.