Dear Wanderer… life is messy. That is all.

KIDDING!

That is not all. Life, however, is messy. Especially when disaster strikes. It can take many forms from a personal disaster to a community disaster or a national disaster. It is just defined as an event that is catastrophic to a person or people, not based on any government entity. I however have found peace within the chaos of disaster, serving a purpose. Primarily disaster cause by mother nature. She can be beautiful, fierce, and devastating. In this case Hays and Caldwell County Texas were among many counties struck by massive flooding at the end of May. The Team Rubicon Signal was thrown up and Operation Double Trouble was launched upon the storm hitting. I have been blessed enough to be a part of this amazing organization. I came down here knowing that I have learned much in the last 21 months, but not knowing where they needed me. I just knew that I would do whatever task they requested of me upon arrival. I coined a term, or learned it somewhere, called Organized Chaos. That is what I do.

I was assigned Team Lead and given a kick ass team of four guys and sent out with a second team around the same size to tackle a trailer court which had been heavily damaged in the floods. HIGHLIGHT OF THE DAY… Jake Wood, CEO of Team Rubicon joined us in the field. We were also lucky enough to have a couple of other kick ass HQ folks with us, they made the day even more rocking! Jake is a rock star in his own right, but he is also totally ordinary. I really look up to him and am so thankful that him and a couple others had this thought that led to the dream I am now living.

The house we were assigned to had already had the interior drywall pulled out. We had some appliances to tackle and the floor needed to be pulled along with the insulation under it. This is my fourth flood operation, but my first time tackling a flooded trailer. The unique thing about every property we work with is that we don’t know how it was built, so we have to understand how to look at it and decide how efficiently to take it out. In this case the floor was made of particle board. Now particle board with damp is relatively easy to pull. In this case the floor had dried and it was back to being hard as a rock. You might wonder why then do we need to pull this apparently rock solid floor? Well in order to properly mold mitigate in the building the floor beams must be exposed to tackle the most convenient place for mold and mildew to lurk in secret.

So we spent the day working our way through cutting and breaking this floor. Between my team and the team we partnered with, we really kick this floors butt. At the end of the day we were all exhausted, but still laughing and loving being with one another.

Wanderers, do not pass up a chance for hard work, especially when you give it freely to help others. At the end of the day you may be exhausted, but it will be that kind of tired that makes life worth living. You have to really dive in, get dirty, throw on a N-95 mask sometimes, and know that no matter what communities can help communities, no matter what form they take. As you wander, build your community, but don’t let the door close on other communities. Our country would become stronger as a whole if we were one giant community of N-95 wearing, hug toting, servants to one another.

So what else can I tell you on a day where so much meant so much to me, but maybe appears so little to you? If you want to help others, help yourself too by providing self care. This does not mean that you should be selfish or self-serving. It means that you take care of you first, like how I spent time doing homework tonight instead of discussing the latest methods of drywall removal. I also took time to take care of my body by showering, using my TENS unit, and applying EO’s for my aching muscles. I took care of my mind by spending time in meditation. I knew these steps would make me better prepared for tomorrow.  They would provide me with the ability to lead and not to just boss people around. I already feel better prepared for the day to come.  Now I can go rest, so that tomorrow I can serve my volunteers, the local community, and myself in the best possible way.

Signing off from Operation Double Trouble Wimberley, TX