Lord Willing and the Creek Don't Rise...

"I'll be there, Lord willing and the creek don't rise", my grandmother, MeMe, would often reply when invited to something.  I never really thought of it in a literal sense, until now.  She wasn't kidding,  the creek did rise, and we were stuck!

It started raining Saturday evening, storming through the night.  We left for church Sunday morning with just a slight drizzle.  As we headed down the drive, we discovered it had rained more than we thought!  Runoff from the night tumbled down ditches, made little rivers across our yard, and cut streams into the gravel road heading down the hill.   Our yard had a mini pond next to our real pond, where the ducks promptly started swimming (they refuse to swim in the real pond, but that is another story).

On the road out, the little bridge over the creek was completely covered.  We turned around and went the other way, the long way, but had to turn around as that road had water flowing over it as well.  Cars ahead of us were not crossing, though some were considering it before turning around.  With two future drivers in the backseat, we made a point to emphasize "turn around, don't drown", and did just that.

We went back home, got cozy, and enjoyed the novelty of being stranded.  We missed church and a birthday party, but spent a relaxing morning drinking coffee and eating lunch on the porch, watching it rain.  We kept up with road conditions and photos of area flooding with the county sheriff's department Facebook page.  Our road had officially closed, and then our water went out!  A main line in the Illinois River had partly washed away.

When the rain let up, we went for a hike to see the small wet weather waterfall in the woods that we could hear from our house.

I'm always amazed at how water, though changeable and fluid itself can etch rocks and change landscapes.  Always reminds me of that concept, "small gains over time"...

When the rain had completely stopped for awhile (and we had a nap), we ventured out.  The flood water had receded as quickly as it had come, and the road was open again.  How lucky are we to live on hills, where we really only have trouble with the occasional flash floods overwhelming drainage systems.  We've thought a lot over the past few days about those with true flooding and loss of life and property.  I cannot imagine.

Here we are Wednesday, the water has been on and off all week as they make repairs.  We're on a boil order, but at least we know we can bathe and flush the toilet as needed (that made me feel a little crazy!).  I always think back to the old days, before people had running water, how hard just bathing and basic sanitation must have been.  It certainly makes one appreciate modern conveniences!