June6, 2020. Madison, Mississippi. Christobal.

A tropical storm is in the Gulf of Mexico, expected to hit land in Louisiana Sunday afternoon. I received a text from Entergy, the power company telling me that the path of the storm can change at any time. The storm, Christobal, could hit Mississippi, Louisiana or Texas. Everyone living along the coast is on high alert, as are the workers at the company. My text tells me they are ready. We moved to Texas in 1964. Just a year or two before we arrived, a hurricane had come ashore close to Galveston where we were living. People who were living there during the hurricane were still talking about it. The city was a mess. No hurricane had come ashore in that area of Texas for ages so no one was ready. And to make things worse, the hospital authorities offered the large hospital building as a safe haven. The stair wells had people living on the landings. Ken and I had never lived in a place where everyone tracked the hurricane map. People had them on their desk and marked the path several times a day. After the last one, every one was watching carefully. At first we thought it weird but soon we marked our maps along with everyone else. It was exciting to keep track. But no one wanted any storm to come ashore any place close to Galveston. And Galveston people listened to the officials and left the island if it appeared the storm was coming close. Everyone evacuated the island. Of course, not the doctors and nurses and all other medical workers. Now we are on a tropical storm watch in Mississippi. No telling where it will head next. Jackson is not on the shore. Katrina devastated the coast of Mississippi and Jackson had damage. But nothing like the coast. Tomorrows storm should be the same. Unfortunately, the expectation is that Christobal will hit New Orleans. But no doubt, we will receive lots of rain and wind. I have flashlights ready. And more importantly, the power company will be on duty. They text me telling why the power is off and say when it will be restored. It is all very civilized. But mostly, I hope the storm heads someplace else.