Back on the farm

Posted by Marc Hodak on January 11, 2008 under Patterns without intention | Comments are off for this article

Well, we’re out on my mother-in-law’s place…or what used to be. The farmhouse I visited just a couple of weeks ago is completely wrecked. It still has much of the ceiling and rooms, but the roof above the ceiling is mostly gone, the windows are blown in, and there is no real shelter from the elements at this point. All her other structures–barn, tool shed, etc.–are completely gone. About a dozen large trees are on their side. The six-foot craters below the root systems of the uprooted trunks is evidence of the violence that visited here. All the furniture, clothing, papers, and other contents were soaked in the rain of the storm.

By the time I arrived, a small army of people had already spent two days cleaning up the site. Family, friends, and neighbors sorted most of the stuff in the house into either a dumpster, a trailer, or bags and boxes, depending on a preliminary sense of what might be salvageable. Local Mennonites came unbidden with food and water, and cut down many of the damaged trees, promising to come back to finish the job.

The outpouring of help received by my mother-in-law gives meaning to the sense of community that exists in this rural area. When a pair of Salvation Army representatives dropped in, my wife cheerfully, if naively, pointed them to a pile of useful stuff that we felt were suitable for donation. The SA reps, looking a little embarrassed, said that they had come to give, not get. After asking mom a few questions about how they could help, they left a $75 check.

At the other end of the spectrum in helpfulness was the Red Cross. While their check was greater, so was the pain of the process in obtaining it. First of all, we had to go to them. (The Salvation Army representatives told us where we could find them). It then took over an hour of answering questions and completing forms. The experience reminds you that one of the biggest downsides to qualifying for institutional relief is the bureaucratic gauntlet required to obtain it.

The insurance adjuster has been busy in this tornado-stricken region, but he finally arrives today. We await his verdict on the damages.