We had one of the worst storms in recent memory blow through last night. I was out with the kids, acting as taxi driver for the evening, and during a three hour span we endured a deluge of rain and hail, and dodged lightning bolts as we ran from various buildings to the car.

We assumed the worst was over when the rain subsided, so as we drove into our neighborhood we breathed a sigh of relief. That is, until we continued on and saw a lake of water at the intersection. I quickly backed up and attempted another route, only to find that water was just as high on the other side. We were 100 yards from our house and unable to pull into the driveway! So close yet so far! Other cars had already stalled attempting to pass through the water. I made a quick decision to just go for it…we all really wanted to get home.

I began praying out loud. I could tell the water was high, as the car was sluggish, but thought I could see higher ground ahead. Instead, as we drove forward, the water became even deeper, and I began to lose steering power while the warning light came on in the car. Uh-oh.

I gunned it, knowing we were too far into the water to back up now. We made it out with a wake behind us and pulled into our driveway a little shaky, but safe.

We could see that tree limbs and leaves had fallen en masse during the storm, and that likely was the cause of the flooding, as the drains were coated with layers of leaves. Derek offered to walk around the neighborhood and clear drains. Jake joined him.

Derek said the water was up to his knees, and he even had to pull up his shorts at times to keep them from getting wet. Once they raked the leaves off the drains, there was such a current of water rushing down that they could feel the water receding on their legs. It was a matter of minutes before the roads went from 2-3 feet of standing water to merely wet.

We all gave many thanks to God for bringing us home safely, as well as for keeping our house safe and dry. By the end of it all, Peter said he was going to have a good story to tell his kids when he’s older.