What a weekend!

Remembering Daddy
We had a great time being together as a family this past weekend! The kids loved playing with cousins 24/7. And the time we spent specifically remembering Daddy under his favorite tree was really good. My mom read some scripture and a poem, we all shared "Randy stories," our favorite things about Daddy, and what a great legacy he left for us. The grand kids each had a small container of his ashes that they scattered in his garden in their individual ways, and my mom and sister, Jenny, scattered some, too. The rest of his will be saved for another time or place.

The memorial spot we created by Grandy's Tree included two concrete benches flanking a stone pedestal topped by a robust Fleur de leis. We will later hang a large wind chime from the tree and place the stepping stones made by the grand kids.

The making of the stepping stones was a small fiasco... concrete hardened too fast. But the kids got their hand prints in and some stones... It was a crazy half hour or so... laughable but stressful... a learning experience to say the least! Before we place them out by Grandy's Tree, we'll try to put a clear resin on top to hold their creations in place.

Here's the family gathered around Grandy's Tree... notice the UTexas gift bag... it played the fight song while we scattered the ashes (for more, see last blog entry).

Gustav Frenzy

So, Daddy didn't exactly get the only top billing for the weekend, since Gustav was heading in. My sister Jenny works with local hurricane relief and her husband is a deputy sheriff, so they both were extremely occupied with sheltering the evacuees, the security needed down south, and all of the necessary preparations. The traffic was also a slight problem in town, because of all the evacuees in the area. Plus, with all the rain expected in my mom's area, we had to go hunt down sand bags, fill them and place them around the house. (We really means the men in the family.)

I am truly thrilled and thankful that the hurricane weakened a bit and that it will not even come close to the devastation of Katrina. But there are still so many people who will lose their homes and many who will stay in shelters as long as possible and not even want to return. Although it's another blow to New Orleans (a city that didn't need another blow!) the South Louisiana spirit is unmatched in it's strength and depth, and New Orleans will rise again!

We were prepared for the drive home to take extra long with all the evacuees on the road... but what we discovered was actually the opposite. By the time we left on Monday, everyone was hunkered down wherever they had landed. Along the interstate we saw rest areas that had been literally "trashed" by swarms of travellers who had long been gone. And every hotel, motel and inn we passed had overflowing parking lots and RVS and motor homes lining them. The signs along the highway alerted us that all shelters were full (as if to say, don't stop, keep driving). But the road itself actually had less traffic than usual and we made it home in record time.

Here's my mom's house all ready for sustained heavy rain.... sand bags... and even a boat... and, yes, it's humid and hot, so sorry about the foggy lens.

So, it was a very memorable weekend. It went well. And now I think as a family we have a wonderful place on the farm as a tribute to Daddy, a place we can visit to remember and celebrate Daddy's life. It feels good!