Whole Trees are Falling: A Waterblog
This morning I checked Facebook to see updates about the flood. The first thing I saw was this:
Just a heads up..watch for dead trees along the river and roads. A HUGE tree fell into our river/street. Thank heavens no one was hurt!😨
So far, I have only gotten emotional a couple of times about the flood. When i learned a pregnant friend-of-a-friend has lost her home, and another time when i saw how overloaded and overwhelmed the volunteers organizing the sandbagging efforts were, like on the third day. I am trying not to let myself get emotional about it because it seems like it would just drag me down to a place I dont want to go. The community pulling together to help each other is actually pretty uplifting, and the work is actually enjoyable to me, despite the circumstances.
(a montana tree..)
This message about dead trees now falling over, is kind of getting to me. I think its because I can see how long of a process this is all going to be, nature is doing its thing, and its not done yet. And really pray no one gets hurt. With this flood we have been lucky because while it is too fast for people to really save many of their belongings, or their homes sometimes, it is slow enough that they have time to get away, and get out without harm to themselves. And I am not sure that all the homes effected are "destroyed" right now, so hopefully many can be cleaned out and just fine later again. That I am thankful for.
But the news of trees falling.. well to me that means the ground is just so saturated over there, and its going to be more dangerous, for a longer time, and truly, it makes me wonder what other areas next to our beautiful river are going to become dangerous too, with falling trees?
And the part of me that becomes very sad is the part of me that has been waiting since last JULY for improved weather. Because this is what my town looked like from July through October last year
We had the worst wildfires in 100 years.
And now this is the worst flood in 100 years.
And I hate to feel sorry for us, or get into that like, self pitying mode! Cuz that is just not useful right now. But I am just having a moment. We can still go outside and enjoy the weather. .. but the river is literally my most favorite place to be in this town, in the summer. Next to the river, in the river, floating on the river, standing on a bridge looking at the river. Its tranquil, idyllic, just serene. They are saying the flood conditions will likely last till early July. We still have snow on the mountains. So there's still more water that has to come down.
Maybe there wont be a bad fire season this year. But if there is, then that would mean just a few weeks before temps are super hot and the air is full of smoke, which just sends everyone inside again. I like to be outside. As much as possible. I get depressed and crazy when I am stuck inside too much.
But its okay too. I can accept this is just happening , and I just want to work, and help. Its been hard to sit by while I work and study this weekend. I am not trying to sound all awesome about that. Helping to sandbag made me remember how much I actually like physical labor. It made me realize I am much stronger than I thought I was. It made me want to keep getting stronger.
And this summer I will keep going on as many hikes as I can, and enjoy the areas around my home town that bring me so much joy this time of year. I am really hoping to do a real backpacking trip or two as well. And if all goes well, even leave this area and travel a bit around the country!
Overall....I can't wait until this test is over. If I pass, it will be amazing. Its for my LCSW license, and it will help me qualify for higher paying work, and it will help me start my private practice, which is going to be like a consulting and coaching practice, but with this license people can use their insurance to pay me, or I can take some therapy clients too (maybe only kid clients), to help with income to support my other work.
If I fail, at least I can stop studying for a while, and focus on the many other things I am interested in and care about!
xo.
dflo
I think you're doing great, under the circumstances.
It's not like this happens every single year, let's hope it doesn't.
Did you hear about the devastating ( intentionally caused) forest fires that took place - over here in Portugal - last year? Two hundred people died and so much forest was destroyed. You can still smell the burnt wood 7 months later.
Keep up the attitude that you're having these days and don't feel bad about venting a little bit ( steemit is free therapy after all ), It's totally understandable :>)
<3 Vincent
P.S. My vote will follow later. I'm running low on power :>)
I think I did hear :(. How horrible . It felt like the whole world was on fire last year . I just drove like 2 hours along the flooded river and I have to say it was actually also so very beautiful. If homes were not in the way of it, it would really just represent a bountiful year of mountain water... I went and sat near it yesterday...I can't go to any of my favorite spots as they are all under water but I found a new favorite spot. It was actually calming and peaceful like sitting near a waterfall. The birds were going happily crazy there too.
As mentioned in my previous comment to you, I enjoy your positive focus. There is beauty in everything, even in what others consider ugly or horrible. For instance, I can thoroughly enjoy Italian giallo movies. Ever seen the 1977 film Suspiria? Some might just call it a nasty slasher film, I think it's a piece of art, for many reasons. To name a few: its soundtrack, cinematography and color design.
There's always new favorite spots to be found. Just as every day is a new day, a new chance, new life.
Birds - and most animals - are almost always happy, at least when they aren't caged or hunted down by people. They don't have as complex emotions as us humans :>)
Anyhow, while my sister, her family and I were driving through burnt forest, I actually enjoyed looking at all the green that was already popping up. Nature is so flexible, so strong. It will always be there. There's always new life and energy to be found :>)
I wish you a day filled with energy.
Just look around you and you will find it...
In ancient times, the Nile flooding was what brought prosperity to the farmers every year. They planted in the flood plain after the flooding ended, the Nile having dropped fertile silt to replenish the fields. Modern people seem to forget that these things happen, and build houses where the river floods go. An odd thing, really.
Nature has beauty even in it's destruction, that allows new life to appear and thrive.
Sounds like a rough situation there. Weather patterns seem to be off kilter in a lot of places. Could it be a result of our man made interference?
In any case, I hope you and your town come out of this stronger. Natural disasters can be devastating, especially if they affect close friends. My prayers are with you folks.