Ike.

This was the weekend of Ike. The weekend that was supposed to revolve around a football trip to Austin instead became a time of fellowship, prayer and constant news-monitoring.

Our weekend began with Aunt Berniece. She lives in Houston, so she drove up here Thursday to stay with my mom for a few days.

It was great to get to catch up with her at dinner Friday, even under these circumstances.

Then we headed home to watch the news channels, and I could not seem to drag myself away from chron.com. We watched the scenes from Galveston and Houston, thankful to know of some friends and family who had evacuated and prayerful for those who had not. I was afraid Ike might take out our power on Saturday, so I hurried to finish my Sunday computer stuff that night, too.

Then Saturday arrived, and we were stunned to see the damage in and around Galveston. At the same time, we were relieved to hear/read good reports from our friends in different corners of Houston. And when we heard about Houston's massive power outages, I felt more than a little guilty as we watched the rain from the inside of our well-lit, air-conditioned home.

Some wind, a "good" rain... We were spared, but our hearts hurt for those who are without homes, without power, without any idea of when they can return to normal.

Donating's easy (through the Red Cross website or by texting), but the recovery will be long and hard. In the meantime, we celebrate each bit of good news—"Power restored!" or "We're home!"—and keep praying.