Sometimes we find ourselves at a time in our lives when we feel that we are being bombarded by problems, challenges, unanswered questions and all sorts of unwanted episodes. You ask questions like: “Why me? Did I do something wrong? What did I leave undone?”
On August 3rd, 2017, on the Hardy Toll Road in Houston Texas, while on my way to a speaking engagement, two of my children and I watched as our only “reliable” family car went up in flames right before our eyes. The other person watching with us was a stranger, who had seen us running away from the smoking car and stopped to ask if we needed to sit in his car while we “watch our car burn instead of him and other road users watch us burn with our car”. The meaning of his statement would only strike me later at a very deep level and I will go into more details about this in a later post.
The car was declared a total loss by the loss adjuster. The second car we had was at the mechanics for repair, which is why I was driving the other one the day it got burnt. The burnt car was our only working car, and for days following the incident we had to rely on a rental car provided by the insurance company.
I became very anxious because a new school year was starting for the kids in a matter of days and, back-to-school shopping had to be done. As foreign nationals in the oil industry, the crash in the oil price was affecting our finances, and so, the unforeseen reality that we were going to need to purchase another car was very troubling for my family.
The experience on the Hardy Toll Road was very traumatic for the children and myself. We had to struggle to get out of the car before it burst into flames, and not until days later did I realize that I had become very withdrawn and paranoid. Each time I got into the rental car I smelt smoke, and would pull over to the side of the road to investigate whether something was burning.
Just as we were getting better psychologically dealing with the loss of the car and its implications, we saw on the news that Hurricane Harvey was going to hit Texas and we were advised to stock up on food, water and other essentials, which we did. The hurricane made landfall on the southern Texas Coast and my city, Houston, was deluged with over 50 inches of rain, causing a never-seen before level of flooding in Houston and its surrounding counties. It rained for days. Our neighborhood lakes had burst their banks and, our streets were flooded, so much that one would have needed a boat or canoe to move around the neighborhood. My county was under a tornado watch for days. Everything looked bleak, scary and hopeless, and my only prayer at that point was that our home would not be flooded. I didn’t think I would have the strength to deal with that, particularly as we had yet to sort out the problem of not having a good car in the family.
My prayers were answered. Our home was spared and we did not get flooded. Many people were not as fortunate and lost their homes and valuables to the storm. Many lost everything; some even their lives.
I watched on television with a heavy heart as thousands of people were rendered homeless as a result of the storm. I wept many times as I watched evacuees being rescued from flooded homes, hospitals, senior living homes, nursing homes and so on. My own problems faded into the background, as many people were facing much greater challenges.
Life will always present pressing challenges, so in the midst of all of the chaos, how does one find perspective? How does one find the strength to not fall apart or throw in the towel? How does one move forward in the face of discouragement? Remember, everyone will face trials and tribulations in life. It’s just a matter of time. So how do you handle it when it comes? The second part of this blog post will deal with my answers to those questions, which I will post soon.
In the meantime, to my Houston family I say: “Stay strong, be courageous, give and be ready to accept love and we shall overcome this season of challenges. We will rebuild and recover all that the storm has stolen from us.”
The aftermath of the storm has been devastating, and although the sun is out again, we will have faith and hope in the creator of the storm, knowing that He knows all things. Even when we are pressed on all sides…, we shall not be crushed.
Like I said, the second part to this post is coming soon.
With much love to you all,
Yemi Sholotan 