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Storm Poetry

I am part of an Austin poetry group and several of us wrote poems related to the storm and its aftermath. Here is mine:

Innocence Lost

They said:

“Reduce your power consumption.”

As if we could hope to steal

a Promethean spark

from the grid gods,

smug in their unregulated hubris

They said:

“Boil your water.”

As if we could magically

conjure its unsolid version

from frozen pipes

not already broken and emptied

They said:

“Trust us.”

As if a hell-frozen-over-Texas

could ever inspire such fealty.

Trust them?

No, never again.

Significant gaps for older adults

At the beginning of the storm, I was contacted by a colleague who said "what is happening in assisted living and retirement sites?" I did not know so I reached out to my network and by the end of the day I had received information on more than 30 sites- senior apartments, assisted living sites and retirement communities who were without water, electricity and in some situations food because their freezers were out or deliveries for food providers could not get through.I spent the next week working with my contacts and networks (personal and through the Aging Services Council) to…

Bedridden friends

We had two friends who were bedridden during the storm. One was chronically stuck in bed and we knew about her. the other we knew was ill but she became unable to care for herself during the storm. The first lady, we got to her after a day of no power by chainsawing fallen trees off of the driveway and driving three blocks to deliver food and water. Her normal caregivers were unable to travel. On a good note there-- we called 911 and police and firemen did wellness checks. She did OK. The second lady had a recent cancer…

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