Just recently, my family experienced one of the biggest obstacles we’ve ever encountered when Hurricane Harvey devastated our area.

At first, we saw the storm as just a “maybe” to us. Although it seemed very unlikely, we took precautions. We picked up things off the floors and unplugged wires that touched the ground. We kept a close eye on the garage, knowing it was the lowest place in our house.

The next time we got up to go into the garage, about one inch of water was inside of it. In only 10 minutes later, five inches had filled the garage. There was still no water in the house, but we realized the water was rising fast and it would soon make it inside.

Slowly but surely, the water had come in our house. First, it came up through the floors, from under the walls, and under the doors. And once it did, there was no stopping it. When the water was up to two feet, we didn’t think it could get any worse but by now, there was no power and not much cell service.

I went to sleep for a couple of hours and woke up surrounded by four feet of water; this is when we grabbed our clothes and a few valuables that had survived. We swam out of our house into the street where the water was even deeper, and we waited for a rescue boat to drive by.

Thankfully, one did. These two guys in a boat drove towards and helped us all in, then they drove us a few streets out of my neighborhood where the roads were higher and drier. They informed us that there was a shelter close by and another guy took us there.

Something as simple as a warm bed every night is something I will never take for granted again. Hurricane Harvey sure did make history – not only for my family, but for many others. I know that this is something I will never forget.