Wifey in The Wild

A Once in A Lifetime Storm

When the rain began, it seemed like an average day. No one could have predicted the deviation that followed. The rain kept coming as if it was intent on filling us to the brim, but even that did not seem out of place to our overly confident town. We had seen storms before. Sure there would be deep waters in low lying areas. Maybe the rivers would swell up over some of our roads. It wasn’t anything we had not experienced before. Then, overnight things began to change drastically. The wind began to scream at us foreshadowing the trauma that was to come. All morning long, heavy rain came down and the sound of trees cracking and bending filled the air. Powerless, we sat and watched as our once beautiful forest town became a disaster area.

My family was lucky. We saw trees fall on our neighbor’s houses, power lines fly down the street, and shallow pools form on the once solid ground around us. We were laying in bed when a sudden, loud cracking jolted me and my husband up. We ran to the window just in time to see a large tree in our backyard give up on its battle against the wind. It dropped to the ground with a thud bringing down the side of our outdoor shed and an internet cable that stretched across our yard. We both stood stunned for a moment realizing that had the tree fallen in another direction, it would have hit the bed we had just been laying in. It felt like time had ceased to exist as we waited for the storm to pass. We played board games in the low light of the dreary day keeping one eye on the window scanning the outside world for the dangers that might come our way. When the rain finally stopped and the wind settled, we breathed deep sighs of relief not knowing that the threat had not passed with the storm. We left our house to survey the damage around us, and were surprised to see the devastation. Trees had been ripped from the ground roots and all. Roads were completely impassable. Once sturdy houses now sported gaping wounds. Our beautiful town now resembled a post-apocalyptic movie scene. It was nothing like we had ever seen before, but as the sound of chainsaws began to fill the air, we held on to hope that this ordeal would be over soon.

Living in The Aftermath

Life after the storm was slow and stagnant as we sat stuck in our home with no power, no water, and no contact with the outside world. Neighbors passed what little news they had gathered down the line, and a daily radio report from city officials sought to reassure us about our situation; however, we had no idea how bad the damage truly was. As our food and water began to dwindle, a sense of danger began to settle over me and my husband. At 6 months pregnant, this was no time for us to be rationing essential supplies. We ventured out into the town seeking to replenish our home and were met with a host of challenges. Many of the roads were impassable due to the destruction leaving us to navigate by trial and error. Most of the once busy establishments nearby were closed with no power or water to serve our community. Gas stations sported large hand made signs stating their closures, and once popular shopping locations sat empty in the dark of the powerless day. When we finally arrived at an open store, we were turned away. Those who had been able to get inside informed us that there was little food and no water available. Reports on the radio spoke of help to come, but with no set timeline for us to expect relief, we sank into despair realizing the peril our unborn child had been thrust into by the storm.

After returning home, we set out on foot, searching for a way to send an SOS to someone outside the disaster zone. At the top of a hill, we found a single spot with enough reception for a spotty call to my mother in Raleigh. Hearing of our distress, she bravely came to rescue us from the uncertainty of our situation. Her  determination and ingenuity brought us to Raleigh where we breathed deep breaths of relief over much needed glasses of water. Outside of the crisis zone, we were able to see the entirety of the destruction for the first time. We learned that our water system had been demolished, and that limited access to the town meant restoration of the necessary supply chain would take some time. Knowing that the imminent birth of our son would require us to have access to food, water, and power, we began to discuss uprooting our lives and permanently relocating to the safety of Raleigh. 

A New Adventure

After much discussion and serious consideration, we decided to take the leap and move our family to the city. It was not an ideal situation, but at the time, it seemed like the best option available to us. In the month that followed, we faced more stress than we had ever imagined.  Though our car had not had trouble making its way out of town, it began to give us grief breaking down twice and ultimately requiring a rather costly amount of work. My husband searched for a job following any lead he could find, but nothing seemed to fit and many of the opportunities that were presented to him fell short of what our growing family needed. We set out to find a place to live, and were met with one obstacle after another. The size and breed of our dog was unwelcome in many of the available spaces, the cost of the many application fees overwhelmed us, and the uncertainty of a family just starting out in a new place proved to be unattractive to the landlords we encountered. 

Staying with my family also presented us with problems. Though my mother promised us safety and security in her home, we quickly found ourselves to be unwelcome. The stress of trying to adjust to their alternative lifestyle created tension between me and my husband. Reliving some of my childhood stressors put a major strain on me, and I felt caught in the middle between protecting my family from disappointment and understanding my husband’s concerns. I began to fear for the wellbeing of the little life growing inside me. My unborn son was being subjected to so much stress, so much sadness, and so much fear. I tried to control my emotions and move through each day with optimism, but for every step forward I tried to take, an unseeable force pushed me two steps back. With heightened emotions and unsettled stomachs, my husband and I finally found the rock bottom of our excursion in Raleigh when my step father threw us out into the night preaching disillusioned statements through his abusive tongue. As always, my mother cowered to his whims allowing him to bar us from the house. Left with no place to go, no support to lean on, and no way to sustain a life in the city, we turned towards each other and began to regroup.

Coming Home

After a month of drudging forward with our plans to relocate, we decided to turn back. We packed up our belongings and headed back to Asheville. We knew this meant we would be facing a whole new world of difficulties and discomfort, but we found solace in the fact that we could finally breathe easy in the unrelenting support of our mountain family. As soon as the decision was made, our luck began to change. We finally caught a break and things slowly started to turn around. With renewed hope, we picked up our now working car from the shop, and headed home to The Blue Ridge. A bright ray of sunshine lit our path back into the mountains, and it appeared that the heavens were guiding our way. The closer we got the more beautiful the sky became. When we finally arrived, we felt a wave of relief rush over us both. That night we slept well for the first time in weeks, and in the morning, we finally began to rebuild our lives in the aftermath of the storm. Full of hope, we ventured forward leaving the debris from the storm in our rearview for good. 

In the month that has followed our misadventure in Raleigh, we have discovered a renewed sense of serenity in the mountains of North Carolina. Though our town is still recovering from the damage of the storm, our family has shown a bright resilience in the face of adversity. My husband and I have grown stronger together, and we look forward to the birth of our son on the horizon. We learned that life may not always be easy. We will require hard work and perseverance to survive the storms to come, but as long as we have each other, we will always be able to find hope and happiness in The Blue Ridge Mountains.