Yes, it’s good to be home. There is no denying that. Sleeping in my own bed is good. The dogs are happier. The cat is still grumpy, but he’s home. And I love waking up to my Lyons view every morning.
The sun hitting Long’s and Meeker at about 7am.
But just because we are home doensn’t mean everything is rosy. Many of our friends are not home. Many of our friends don’t have homes to return to. The damage is still there. Highway 36 to Estes Park opened monday, but it will need to be completely redone come spring. Our water went out this morning. I share that not to elicit sympathy, but to point out that while the ‘feel good’ media stories have passed, our town and the other communities affected by the flooding still have a long way to go. There are a lot of folks here who still need help. If you are looking for a good way to lend a hand, I recommend this website: Lyons Fights Back. The video is pretty powerful, and the links allow you to direct donations.
The outpouring of support and volunteerism has been wonderful, and it needs to continue. Fundraising is still desperately needed and while things are being patched together, many fundamental questions about rebuilding remain. The complexity of dealing with a river that moved is only now becoming clear.
The river used to run here.
Now the river runs about 250 feet south of its original course.
And yet we try to be as normal as we can. Everyone goes to work and school. The piles of debris are getting smaller. Some restaurants are opening, others will be up and running by December. Some will stay closed.
I posted a song a bit ago that was flood inspired, and I keep churning out songs. Most of them are crap, as is the way with making art. You’ve got to make a lot of bad to get to the good. When I wrote the song posted here I was thinking of some friends of mine whose losses are much greater than ours, and I was thinking about the sense of community that has arisen in the midst of this. At a town meeting in October (we were having our town meetings in Longmont since no one could get in to town)a reporter commented via twitter that the sense of community was palpable. I liked that. Community is something you feel. It has a physical presence. Even after the flood.
