It's Deja Vu all over again

Hey ya'll. I hope you had a wonderful weekend. We spent Saturday helping Leslie and Mike clean out their backyard. It was such a humbling experience. When we got there a little after 8:00, the backyard was a mess. It sounds so stupid to think, but I never really thought about how you clean up after a tornado. It leaves such tiny debris, but it is everywhere. So it was tons of raking bits and pieces of shingles, paper, nails, plastic, wood, leaves, limbs...you name it. There was a busload of volunteers that was actually dropped off right outside Leslie's house, and we all just worked side by side cleaning up a little at a time. When it came time to get the roof off the pool, I was certain at A) someone was going to fall in the pool, and B) that the roof was going to end up in the pool instead of on it. However, neither happened. They attacked the roof with chainsaws, and just dismantled it, and within a couple of hours the roof was gone. It was amazing!

The saddest thing that happened was after I had been there for a little while a middle aged man came over from the yard behind Leslie and Mike's. The house was destroyed, and most of the roof/attic ended up in their backyard. He told me that it was his parent's house and many years ago they lost a baby. They had a small hope chest in the attic and it was the only thing that his mother wanted to retrieve from the mess. It was full of everything she had left from her baby. My Mom and I immediately moved to his yard, and starting moving debris. We had found a congratulations card for a baby in Leslie's yard, along with part of a funeral register. After searching for several hours in the other yard, we came across a white teddy bear in a Ziploc bag that was in the chest.

We never found anything else.

How does that happen? How do you lose everything like that...all those memories and keepsakes just gone. So sad. The Mother was shocked that we were able to find what we did. By the time the day was over, Leslie's entire yard, along with two neighbors, was clean. It was hard work, but so worth it, even the pain from my tetanus shot. I will be back on Saturday to help more. There is still so much to be done.

In other news, Jackson will be having surgery on Friday to put tubes back into his ears. This will be his second set, so be in prayer that he will do great during the procedure, and that this will be the last set that he needs. Have a great day!