A Near Impossible Story

It snowed on Tuesday, April 2, 2019, in Charlotte, NC!! Gasp!! The daffodils had been blooming for weeks, the tulips had emerged, azaleas were showing their color, peonies were starting to bud… and the snow was coming down. In the words of my people, “who woulda thunk it!!” (I know, I know, all you grammar people out there — but it just doesn’t have the same kind of emphasis when you say, “Who would have considered such a thing?”)

Let us use this event as a life analogy. How many times have you heard something like, “that is completely unlikely,” or “it is so close to impossible that it is never going to happen,” or maybe someone just laughed at you. Well, folks, IT SNOWED IN APRIL IN CHARLOTTE, NC. Spring comes early here, and the possibility of frost up until April 15 is certainly a fair probability, but snow? It didn’t come down for long, and it was gone quickly as the snow turned to rain and the temperature went up to 40 degrees, but it DID snow. Over the weekend, I was wearing capris and a t-shirt, the temperature was close to 80, and the snow was not even a thought for two days in the future, YET it snowed. Sure, it was a little cooler on Monday, and I had to wear a pair of jeans and a denim jacket outside (fluctuation in temperature is to be expected in the spring), but SNOW?

They said, "There is no way it is ever going to snow in Charlotte in April” … but wait, it could happen! Because near to impossible does not mean impossible.

Now you fill in the blank for something in your own life they said would never happen.

They said, “There is no way you are ever going to ________________________” … but wait, it could happen! Because near to impossible does not mean impossible.

Write your own near impossible story.

Florence, the Hurricane

What a weekend this has been. Hurricane Florence hit the North Carolina Coast and, so far, there is no telling how much damage was done. Here in Charlotte and the surrounding area, there was a lot of flooding. I've seen pictures of roadways, parks, backyards, and fields all turned into temporary lakes. The effects last, schools and libraries are closed and will remain closed through Monday.

For my husband and I, Florence was an inconvenience. We secured all of my yard art, took plants from the front steps, and tied down the city trash cans. Inside we gathered items in case we had to leave the house quickly; medications, journals, my instruments and most used puppets, electronics, and important work papers.

Our intention was to batten down and wait out the storm in our house, and we did. The power did go out early on Sunday, but that really wasn't a big deal. It was a good thing we stayed because otherwise, we would have had a flooded downstairs. Our gutters were not functioning well, even though they were cleaned out a month ago. I spotted a large pool of water forming against the house. So, Steven and I went out in our raincoats and began to dig waterways and tributaries for the build-up to escape. A creek had already developed on our side yard so we just created a different path of least resistance. We let the pooled water join in the flow (no pun intended). We really got wet, but no big deal; we had dry clothes in the house. The power stayed out until after dark. We emptied a good share of the refrigerator into coolers and lit candles for light.

Florence weakened in strength far more than any meteorologist expected. The impact could have been so much worse. However, this storm for many was a really big deal!

Now is the time to check in with your neighbors. Let's look around and see what we can do for one another. It may not be much but all those little bits can certainly turn into a lot. Everyone who has a challenge has a story to tell. Let's listen to one another.