Hurricane Irma is Going to Hit My Home Town

I cannot get my mind off this horrible hurricane Irma for a lot of reasons. My 94 year old mom fell and broke her hip about three weeks ago and we made an emergency run to St Petersburg Florida - the city where I grew up. She transferred to a rehab facility near the water and had to be evacuated to Lutz, north of Tampa, on Friday morning. We left Florida two weeks ago and I never thought it might be the last time we would see the city in one piece. We are hoping where she is is a safe place, and are now concerned about her house. It is on higher ground, but nothing like this has ever happened in the sixty years she has lived there. Luckily her next door neighbors are like our next of kin and will be looking out for her and her house. We know more people in Florida than any other state and it is so difficult to hear and see what is about to happen over the next 24 hours. We have been on overdrive since we heard about her fall, the surgery, the rehab, and now the hurricane. We have been staying in contact as the days pass. I just hope it will all be over soon. The unknowns are the worst. This is the place I grew up and I, and a lot of other people, are feeling very sad and helpless.

I Hate Irma and all Hurricanes

I always knew I would never live any where near water. Growing up in Florida taught me that lesson. Our family home is located on higher ground away from the tide, but during hurricanes things can get dicey. But it even gets worse when you have a 94 year old mother who just broke a hip and is currently in a rehab unit right next to the water. And so the day has been hair raising and worrisome when I got a call that they have to evacuate the residents to another facility in Lutz, a city on higher ground past Tampa. It's hard to allay anyone's fears from a distance. My mother was supposed to go home today, but it would be the worst idea at this time. And even if she depends on the neighbors in good times, this is just not the right time to expect they manage her care now. So a decision was made for her to go with the group tomorrow morning for another adventure she wasn't counting on. She has lived in Florida for almost sixty years and this situation never reared its ugly head like this. But she didn't just break a hip and wasn't in a rehab center either. We were just in Florida a couple of weeks ago and feel quite helpless now. I suppose things could be much worse. We will keep our fingers crossed.