Hurricanes and anniversaries

August 29 was our 22nd wedding anniversary.
August 29 was the 3rd anniversary of Hurricane Katrina's devastating landfall.

By candlelight, in the coolness of the morning, on September 2, 2005, a few days after Hurricane Katrina hit, I wrote the words to this song. Being without power at my house, I drove 200 miles to my in-laws' house where I recorded it on my Digitech GNX4.

Sparked by that event, my songwriting continued to flow and in February of this year, I traveled to Fort Wayne, Indiana to record an album of 11 original songs, with David Smith providing the backing instruments and harmony.
Link to song on iTunes

We are watching as Gustav seems to have taken aim on our area of the country. People have been acting more quickly, stocking up on supplies, etc. We are praying that we will be spared. We are trying to prepare for the worst.

This year, things are a little more difficult, as my dad has recently begun dialysis treatments 3 days a week in a town about 25 miles away. Gas shortages could make the trip difficult.

He's also on a machine that delivers a higher concentration of oxygen, which requires electricity. He doesn't require it 24-hours a day, but usually sleeps with it on. Our water comes from an electric well in our yard, which is the source of our drinking water, water for washing, flushing, whatever. We have a generator, but only about 30 gallons of gas. I'm not sure how long that will last. My parents live in a camp that they built on our property and are also on our well for water. I am trying to figure out the best way to maximize the use of the one generator. When Katrina hit, we didn't have the generator. We had a small swimming pool in the back yard, and I used water from the pool for flushing. Nine days without electricity. No bathing. No cooking. No air conditioning in August, early September in southwestern Mississippi. Lord, I would rather not repeat that!
Well, compared to others, we were very blessed to not suffer significant damage or injury.
I'm off to continue preparations...
Gerard

And then, this rock I find...

If you haven't listened to my song "How Can You Think of Me?", STOP! Well, pause for a moment, open another browser window to http://gfsongs.com and when the songs start to play, switch to track number 2 and listen. This was the song that was inspired by my walks along the creek (well, Ladd's Branch) that runs through our property.

Here are the lyrics:

How Can You Think Of Me?

Words and music by

Gerard C. Faucheux, Sr.

I walk along the creek

And feel the sand beneath my feet

And God, I feel so small.

‘Cause you told Abraham

“Boy, see these grains of sand?

I’ll give you children, more than them all.”

(Chorus)

So Lord of all time and space

And of the whole human race,

How can you think of me?

How can you think of me?

And then this rock I find

Brings other thoughts to mind

About the earth and its age.

No matter what that might be

Compared to eternity

It’s just a speck on history’s page.

(Repeat Chorus)

(Bridge)

Lord, I can’t comprehend

Your thoughts or your plans

Why would You ever think of me?

But You formed me in the womb

You’ll save me from the tomb

And in between, You’re always near me!

I walk out in the yard

At night and look at all the stars

And once again, I feel so small.

The furthest ones they say

Are billions of light years away,

But your word says you’ve named them all.

(Repeat chorus)

Copyright © 2006-2008 by Gerard C. Faucheux, Sr.

Saturday was a LONG day that started with a trip with my dad to his dialysis treatment. Seeing a room full of patients sitting for about 4 hours at a time, allowing a machine to try to mimic something that our awesome Creator established, well, what can I say? In the brief time that I was there, I was emotionally drained.

I left there and stopped first at a place that sold clothing for little kids, to purchase tap shoes and ballet slippers for my 10-yr old daughter. I honestly teared up when the sales person brought out those big shoes! They were the right size, but I was not ready to admit that my little girl was that grown up :(

I got in the car and somehow made it to another town, where I had to buy a part for my ailing lawnmower. It's great having a huge yard, EXCEPT for when it needs to be mowed! And you would think that with 3 boys that I would be able to turn over some of these jobs? Well... until I get a new lawnmower, one that I can trust, I'll keep doing it myself. Hey, it's almost September. Shouldn't have to do this MANY more times!

Well, I got home and since ANOTHER hurricane/tropical storm (Fay) was headed towards us, we loaded up the generator and brought it to my parents' camp. Since my dad's on oxygen, we need to make sure that we keep the juice flowing!

FINALLY back home, I decided to walk out to the creek to see if there was any water, since it has been dry for months (watch the videos on http://godtube.com/gfaucheux or http://myspace.com/gfaucheux to see the water). There were a few puddles from the fresh rain, but it wasn't flowing. I walked for maybe 100 yards, to a point that's probably closest to the house, a place where the bank is probably about 12 feet above the water with steep sides that cave in a little more with each rain. Down in the water, I spied a rock that looked out of place. I have found large pieces of sandstone, but this was different. I picked it up and examined it and was shocked at what I saw. After all of the tiny pieces of fossils that I have found that I suspected were fossilized coral, well, here, I was holding something that looked like a hunk of coral reef!
Check out these pictures! I have a few more posted on my Facebook page