AsI look around this wonder and awe, leaving me feel humbled, tiny and insignificant. Two of those many things are unfolding themselves right before me, here in Southern Manitoba. The raw power of Mother Nature can at times be beyond anything we can even imagine.
Now, it seems like every year flooding is an issue at least to some extent or another. This year in areas it is being described as a once in every 3 hundred year flood. huge areas of land are under water. Many of these areas are usually high and dry. Thousands have been evacuated, countless homes and businesses destroyed or severely damaged. Untold numbers of acres of farm land now a huge lake. for the first time that I am aware of a special state of emergency has been declared for farm livestock. I read somewhere that at least 100,000 head of cattle have to be relocated to higher dry ground, but where?
The army has been called in. Dikes are being reinforced and raised but that water just keeps coming. Countless families are building sand bag dikes around their home, separately trying to hold the water at bay. For many this is all for naught. The government is planning a controlled breach of a dike, purposely sacrificing some homes to try and save many more. And the water just keeps coming.Prayers for all affected please.
As I see the devastation happening around me. I see something more, I see the beautiful hearts of so many people shining through. Filling bags with sand and then placing them around a home to build a dike is dirty hard heavy labor. It is something I don’t think anyone would enjoy doing.Yet there is a real need for help in doing it.
The love, the goodness, the kindness contained within the human heart,humbles me, leaves me in awe. Where help is needed total strangers are showing up to help. I was told some are taking and using vacation time from work to be able to go out and help. Acts such as this just leave me speechless.
Dying mans daily journal 
I saw some photos of the flooding yesterday — just devastating. I’m keeping all those affected in my thoughts and prayers. I hope that you are safe where you are, Bill.
Hi Bill,
The initial warning about the Assiniboine River came in February. When the dikes went up in March, some riverfront residents complained about the lousy mess and lousier views in their backyards. They are thankful now for the mess of aqua dams, super-sandbags and earth that have so far prevented the river from turning their yards into river-bottom gumbo If the dikes fail, the new 500,000 sqft Keystone Centre will be under seven feet of water.
The Free Press has ‘floodcams’ http://www.winnipegfreepress.com/special/flood/webcams/
Some of the people I’ve heard on CBC have given me a heart bursting with sadness. One mother has been in a hotel since November with three children and a hubby. They haven’t had a home cooked meal in weeks – lots of microwaved stuff.
My prayers to all.
Oh my….. I had a look at Henri’s webcam sight. I had no clue. But the sights are familiar. We dealt with a horrid 3hundred year flood not that long ago. I still have a hurting heart when I enter parts of the city that are forever gone–homes that remain empty and unsalvageable from that incidental flood.
*sigh*
My heart hurts for all those lives affected.
And as we experienced here, the outpouring of love was so overwhelmingly awesome.
Humbled is a good word.
I send prayers to everyone.
And I pray all is well for you and yours.