Every time I talk to my mom she is happier. She has more stories about more people that have helped our family so selflessly. She is more whole. And it appears that most of the flooded families on Vineyard Drive in Santa Clara are feeling the same: a little more recovered, a little more relieved.
While that's true - recovery is happening - this is just the beginning.
Yes, amazing progress has been made with cleaning up the muddy mess left by the flood, but more than a few families face literal reconstruction of the majority of their homes. And most, left with so little financially, are feeling truly devastated.
Thinking about the dire circumstances of these people makes me feel guilty for just sharing my parents' story, whose situation is quite hopeful when compared to others' dismal situations.
Example A: my parents still have room in their home for comfortable living, but the children of a neighboring family down the street are staying in a camper parked in their front yard because their small basement - now totally destroyed - is where they slept. Those children will most likely be in that camper through the pending fall and winter...they may easily be there until reconstruction of their home can occur, and their parents don't know when that can happen.
Example B: some families' homes have been entirely condemned. Complete demolition of their old homes is required and building an entirely new home is necessary. Can you imagine being required to build a home without having any financial reserve or preparation to do so? The thought alone is so overwhelming...
Federal relief cannot come to these people - the magnitude of the devastation isn't quite wide enough - and yet they don't have the financial resources to recover. That is why a few beloved, good hearts have taken action in creating this outlet for anyone, anywhere, to help take the weight off the shoulders of so many nearly homeless fathers, mothers, elderly couples, and children:
While that's true - recovery is happening - this is just the beginning.
Yes, amazing progress has been made with cleaning up the muddy mess left by the flood, but more than a few families face literal reconstruction of the majority of their homes. And most, left with so little financially, are feeling truly devastated.
Thinking about the dire circumstances of these people makes me feel guilty for just sharing my parents' story, whose situation is quite hopeful when compared to others' dismal situations.
Example A: my parents still have room in their home for comfortable living, but the children of a neighboring family down the street are staying in a camper parked in their front yard because their small basement - now totally destroyed - is where they slept. Those children will most likely be in that camper through the pending fall and winter...they may easily be there until reconstruction of their home can occur, and their parents don't know when that can happen.
Example B: some families' homes have been entirely condemned. Complete demolition of their old homes is required and building an entirely new home is necessary. Can you imagine being required to build a home without having any financial reserve or preparation to do so? The thought alone is so overwhelming...
Federal relief cannot come to these people - the magnitude of the devastation isn't quite wide enough - and yet they don't have the financial resources to recover. That is why a few beloved, good hearts have taken action in creating this outlet for anyone, anywhere, to help take the weight off the shoulders of so many nearly homeless fathers, mothers, elderly couples, and children:
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The "Flood the Love" venture has taken hours of work in organizing, and it has so much potential to be successful. The goal of making $10,000 for the affected families is more than achievable!
Since realizing how needy these families are, I have thought multiple times, "What if that happened to Ryan and me - and Olivia and three other children?"...and then my heart hurts too much to not give something. The fear in the hearts of these parents is more than real: they need help.
Personally, I donated online through their website via the PayPal link on the right-hand side of the webpage. Ryan and I may be currently counting our own pennies, but if he and I needed help giving our little daughter a safe place to live, I would welcome - so gratefully - any assistance from another.
I believe that is innate within all of us to do good. I believe that it is intrinsic to human nature to help someone that is sorrowing find solace. While the focus of this recent message from Elder David A. Bednar is on discerning light from Heavenly Father, a single phrase that he says in it has been on my mind all week long as I have heard story upon story about people who have helped the flood victims:
"Everything that invites us and entices us to do good comes from God."
As I have seen so many doing good to those in need in Santa Clara - particularly now through the financial relief, like "Flood the Love" - I more firmly believe that there is true goodness in our hearts, and that goodness comes from our living Heavenly Father. I also know that when we respond to God's guiding light to lift His children, He gives us what we need in return through another one of His Sons, Jesus Christ.
So give a little, and for doing so, expect more than a little in return from our Father in Heaven that loves us all deeply...more than we will ever ever grasp.
Flood the Love!
So give a little, and for doing so, expect more than a little in return from our Father in Heaven that loves us all deeply...more than we will ever ever grasp.
Flood the Love!
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