Three Months Post Tornado

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Off with the old (roof)
On with the new!
They're working up a storm (I know...terrible pun in the circumstances). 3 months later, still getting rid of the old and broken and replacing, repairing, rebuilding. Every day is a surprise (a good one!) and a feeling of gratitude that we have so many wonderful craftsmen working on getting us our house back.

Today is the third month anniversary of the tornado. I can't believe 3 months have passed! It's amazing what occurs to me and comes to mind when I am doing something else and least expect it. A memory shared on Facebook reminding me of a post from years past, a picture that shows up with the snow-covered pines and evergreens muffling sound and surrounding the house with a stunning scene. And now there's broken pieces of trees everywhere you look, and wide open space for all to see its brokenness.

We celebrated the holidays last week when the kids were all in town and we could be together. I learned a lot about myself through that. On one hand, when I love being surrounded by family, I felt shell shocked in some ways and not wanting to be here in this space. I always loved when everyone congregated on the other side of the kitchen island when I was cooking. Everyone would have a glass of wine, share stories of the year and plans for the ones to come. Decorations and lights would be on, the fire roaring. This year in cramped quarters, I decided I couldn't do it all, which is a huge shift for me! I reached out to the kids, told them what I would need and asked them to plan among them, which they did.

We had a great dinner, shared all kinds of laughter around a table barely large enough to hold us and what really hit me was how they all collaborated to give us gifts that were for us all to experience together.  Not things as much as things to do — a trip for all of us to the Escape Room, dinner before or after, gifts of them and time that we rarely have and always love. How much better does it get than that?

Jean: Carpenter extraordinaire!
And while we figure out our lives in temporary housing and trying to keep to as normal a routine as we can, the crew from Bassi work tirelessly, inside and out. There is never less than 5 people at a time working on all corners of the house, rebuilding, patching, constructing and painting. Every time I walk in, I'm amazed at the hub of activity. There's always a colour to choose or material to consider and the contractors have become decorating consultants as well as craftsmen :-)  So what if I chose the cover for the samples as our siding?  There should be that shade of white!  And Jean is ever present, making sure they do a perfect job...and they are! The house is even wrapped in plastic now so the weather doesn't ruin the walls as they're being finished and painted.

They aren't only rebuilding our home but they're creating a new container for holidays and memories to come, for the every day life stuff to the extraordinary celebrations. They are treating it with care and caring. I had that feeling when I first met the crew and the sense of knowing that everything they do is their best continues to strengthen.

Thank you Barry and gang. Because you're helping rebuild and are so amazing to work with, we can sleep at night and never worry. And as the new year dawns, we'll consider what our life will be like back in our community that has taken such a hit. But the heart of it, our amazing neighbours will continue to shine and relationships will strengthen. That's 'home'.

Here's to 2019. May it be a great one for all!

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