Appreciation 2020

Ruthie Lanigan
Mar 30, 2020
6 min read

What a year it’s turning out to be. Or should I say it’s been one hell of a March.

The month started with a tornado running through the middle of Tennessee after midnight on March 2nd. We woke to the alarms on our phones alerting us. The news had warned us earlier in the evening that there may be tornados so we immediately knew what was going on.

We quickly jumped out of bed and got dressed. Jim turned the television on to see where it was headed and unfortunately, it looked like we were right in it’s path.

One of my coworkers that lives in in the Nashville suburb of Germantown called me and told me we needed to get in the bathtub…. now! This was about 1:00 a.m. The tornado had already gone through her area and was definitely headed our way.

We stood in the front of the house watching the heavy rain and hail. The wind continued to get stronger and stronger. We watched our one little tree (Steve) in the front yard bend with the wind and I worried if he would survive.

I was just about ready to jump in the tub with the cats when Jim said it had passed. He had been watching the reports on his phone and the news station reported it was at Highway 109, which is just East of us. It had passed us.

We stayed up and watched the news for a bit. We watched the path the tornado was taking and the damage it had created behind it. Some of our favorite places in Nashville were affected. We had no idea what damage the morning would reveal.

The next morning I was up and about early. Being in the world of property management, I had buildings I needed to check on. I had no idea of the severity of the tornado or how close it had come to our house until I left.

I drove down the main road from our neighborhood to head to the highway. What I saw was total devastation. There were trees everywhere, electric lines down and pieces of buildings scattered across the road and in the trees. Every path I tried to take to get out of Mt. Juliet was a closed road. The destruction was everywhere. The scariest part was that it had hit about a mile from our house.

I continued that morning to try to get to my office but after 5 hours of being on the road I gave up. So many roads were closed and traffic was just stopped.

The following days/weeks were a total show of support in the area. The people in our area area amazing! #NashvilleStrong #MtJulietStrong

Everyone was helping everyone.

Then, a few short days later we encountered our next hurdle. Covid-19. This pretty much stopped the volunteer efforts for the tornado victims. There is still a lot of cleanup work going on but it’s probably about 20% of what is was. Once the virus started, groups were limited to no more than 10 but I think that has even stopped. Now we focus on Covid-19.

The next step in the Covid-19 crisis was for the counties to start the Safer at Home or Shelter in Place. This quickly became the new norm. March 20th was the first day I was mandated to work from home. Originally I thought I would hate it and go crazy. After one full week, of working from home, I adjusted to a somewhat normal work routine. We bought a new monitor for me and I set my workspace up in the dining room. Jim either works at the island in the kitchen or in one of the spare bedrooms. I’m blessed to be with someone I can actually spend 24/7 with and not go insane. We laugh frequently throughout the day and I honestly think we have become even closer.

I am teaching myself how to be more effective working from home. I put Shelby’s (one of our cats) bed next to me so she can just lay down and sleep next to me all day. If I don’t do that she comes to me frequently throughout the day and asks me to pet her. With her bed next to me, she is comfortable and relaxed.

On a personal note, I have found many things to enjoy about staying at home. I can enjoy my new home. I knew that I wanted an open living environment but didn’t realize how much I would appreciate it. We have large windows everywhere and I never feel trapped. I truly enjoy the open air space we have.

As far as the outdoors in concerned, I have enjoyed it so much. This past weekend we were out and about quite a bit. Walks in the neighborhood are always enjoyable and we have taken full advantage of neighborhood sidewalks and our trails. People are everywhere. In their yards working, riding bikes, taking walks. Everyone is very friendly. We all wave and give plenty of room when you pass others. I’ve seen people flying kites. People fishing in the stream that runs along the walking path we take, parents playing more with their kids. The world does seem to be going at a slower pace and everyone does seem happier and more relaxed.

We were able to get a lot done around our house this weekend also. I cut the grass (one of my favorite things to do to relax), Jim spread new mulch everywhere, I cleaned our barbecue grill and we got all our patio furniture out of the garage and back to the patio. We are ready for Spring!

We’ve also been staying in touch with family and friends through Facetime, texting, calling or yelling across fences. My granddaughter taught me a new game on Facetime. :-). Not the most attractive photo(s) but it was fun and it made her giggle.

Goofiness at its finest!

They are managing through their own stress of being at home and being home-schooled by their mom and dad. David and Tiffany are doing an amazing job of keeping the kids on a schedule and moving their education forward. I can’t imagine what it would be like to have your children’s school close and know you are responsible for their education. Scary. And kudos to all the teachers that have found ways to reach out to the kids! We have parades in our neighborhood of teachers driving down the streets waving to all the kids. You rock!

Our neighbors are also amazing. We have had a mini- happy hour with our neighbors that connect to our yard. Each of us staying in our own yards. It was so nice and it was a really good way to get to know your neighbors better.

Next week was our scheduled trip to Thailand and Vietnam. Of course we have to cancel. I’m okay with that though. I’m finding a lot of good places to explore right here in Tennessee! There are so many places to hike and explore. We’ve done this with many of our friends since we have moved here and we will continue ! Until we can explore with our friends again, Jim and I will keep it going on our own. Chuck and Sue Clifford, Korey and Anna Hart, Kevin and Kathy Johnston, Al and Cece Lanigan, Mike and Jill Bennett, Paul and Elaine Coates, Mike and Alicia Wallace, Tim and Lauren Tinsley……. get ready for the next round of “Nashville with the Minigans”! Can’t wait to add people to the list!

We’ll see what the next few weeks bring but I know we will be fine. Jim and I have learned that we will be great partners even when we retire. We compliment each other in so many ways. We have begun taking walks after dinner. They are amazing. We solve all problems of the world and know exactly what our perfect house would be living in the perfect country (we’ve not decided which country that will be, but we have narrowed our choices down to just a few). Jim has taken up guitar playing and it is a complete joy to listen to him practice. How I love this man! We laugh at each others jokes, we lean on each other for support when one of us is feeling “off” and we remind each other that we love the other. No matter what.

Our best wishes to all of you! We love you and want you to stay safe.

Here are some fun photos from the past few days….