We are now under a flash flood warning in our county and surrounding counties:
EXCESSIVE RUNOFF FROM HEAVY RAINFALL WILL CAUSE FLOODING OF SMALL CREEKS AND STREAMS...COUNTRY ROADS...AS WELL AS FARMLAND ALONG THE BANKS OF CREEKS AND STREAMS.
MOST FLOOD DEATHS OCCUR IN AUTOMOBILES. NEVER DRIVE YOUR VEHICLE INTO AREAS WHERE THE WATER COVERS THE ROADWAY. FLOOD WATERS ARE USUALLYDEEPER THAN THEY APPEAR. JUST ONE FOOT OF FLOWING WATER IS POWERFUL ENOUGH TO SWEEP VEHICLES OFF THE ROAD. WHEN ENCOUNTERING FLOODEDROADS MAKE THE SMART CHOICE...TURN AROUND...DON/T DROWN.
In the northern part of the state, they have seen as much as nearly 8 inches of rain. Many homes are flooded that do not have flood insurance. Some folks have lived there as many as 50 years and have seen nothing like this. Let's keep them in our prayers.
So all this rain made me think about sampans. Callie and I have started reading a good book called The House of Sixty Fathers. In it the family has a sampan, which is basically a boat with some type of roof or covering over part of it. Here's a synopsis of the book:
THE HOUSE OF SIXTY FATHERS
Tien Pao is all alone in enemy territoy. Only a few days before, his family had escaped from the Japanese army, fleeing downriver by boat. Then came the terrible rainstorm. Tien Pao was fast asleep in the little sampan when the boat broke loose from its moorings and drifted right back to the Japanese soldiers. With only his lucky pig for company, Tien Pao must begin a long and dangerous journey in search of his home and family.
Anyway, so it's raining, rivers are rising, so I did a Google search on "sampan" and then clicked on images. Pretty interesting if you want to try that yourself. Imagine what it would be like to put a family of 4, a pig and some ducks in one of these while being shot at by the Japanese army and start rowing as fast as you can go. And that's just the very beginning of the book.
Good night and stay dry.
Sherry
