Let me begin by saying to whoever you are, wherever you may be, that we are going to get through this. If anybody can rebuild and bounce back from a storm like this, it's the city of Houston. I have never in my life seen such a strong and connected city.
You never think in your lifetime that you'll see your city sink. I've lived in Houston my entire life. I was born in a hospital downtown. This city is all I've ever known.
A week ago, news channels across the city were overrun with warnings of a hurricane-turned-tropical-storm that would soon hit Houston. Growing up here, I laughed it off, sure that it would dissipate before getting anywhere near my city. And I have never been more wrong. Homes are completely submerged in a murky green mixture of sewage and bayou water, cars are sunken, and people have perished in these flood waters. The news is 24/7 coverage of a mixture of new fatalities and footage of shelters opening up across the city welcoming newly homeless Houstonians.
This storm baffled me, as a mile down the road from my mothers, there is almost no sign that there had even been rain for 2 days straight like we had. Yesterday afternoon my mother and I evacuated our home that we've lived in for nearly 3 years, I watched my mom put all of herself in to this home. We left on a raft with nothing more than a few outfits, my school stuff, and our cats. We chose to leave in fear that things were only going to get worse. Today, I watched my mother's 6-foot-something boyfriend walk in water up to his shoulders to go check on our house. Let me tell you, if you have not personally experienced this, there is no way to explain the overwhelming devastation that I felt seeing him walk back towards us knowing he was bearing bad news. My mothers couch was floating in the living room, and our cars looking hopeless. As the waters rise, I have to keep reminding myself that all of these things are material. Everyone that I love is safe and doing well, and that is what is truly important. Although many I know have lost their homes, many were lucky enough to get through this storm seeing little to no water at all.
So now the storm has passed and recovery has already begun. Houstonians have started to come together and rescue neighbors, so and so's cousins sisters daughters best friend's, and total strangers. I feel so blessed to live in a state, as well as a country where people are taking time out of their week to travel for hours to assist in rescues and volunteer in shelters. So to all of you who have helped us so much already on the road to recovery, I cannot thank you enough, thank you for risking your lives to save others and expecting nothing in return. Along with that, so many people have donated money to help with the rebuilding of our precious city, and to them, I am forever grateful. We cannot do this alone. Thank you to all of the celebrities raising awareness as well as donating. Every dollar, every dime, every penny, helps. Thank you to Red Cross, thank you to FEMA, thank you to all of the volunteers helping at GRB, Reliant, local shelters, churches, thank you for offering up your time to help the hundreds of thousands of people who need it. Thank you to those who have donated clothes, food, diapers, and so on, as many have lost everything in this flood. And thank you especially to law enforcement, for the hours you spend away from your family risking your lives to help keep us safe.
Houston needs help now more than ever, and the overwhelming support we have received thus far brings me to tears.
Houston, we will bounce back from this stronger than before.