Cyndi's Two Cents

Resiliency in the face of loss

Commentary.

My heart breaks when I see pictures and video and hear from those farmers and ranchers who have suffered through the blizzards or flooding across the Midwest.  Growing up in a farming community near the Illinois River and now living in one near the Missouri River, I am familiar with the benefits and the disadvantages proximity to a river brings.

I know the power of that wicked wet force of nature that willfully serpentines, fighting with humankind to determine its own path across the land.  And I know the important role the river plays as a drainage channel, an energy source, and a travel route for commerce.  I know what the fertile soils of the river bottoms can yield.

I have experienced the eerie stillness of the night with only the lapping of the brown river water against the sandbags stacked up to reinforce the levee to prevent it from eroding and breaching.  I have filled sandbags and searched for seep holes.  I’ve been there when the fight against flooding was won, and I’ve been there when even the most valiant efforts by an army of volunteers and The Army National Guard were no match for the unbridled fury of a violent torrent of water. 

Floods leave scars. 

The economic impact of a flood’s assault against the land and its inhabitants is the most obvious wound. The damages left behind by the most recent flooding is yet to be measured. We’ve learned about damage to homes, farm buildings, grain bins and in some areas – entire small towns. In some cases, something was left to salvage.  In others: a total loss.

Livestock died.  In Nebraska, hundreds of animals were swept away in the floods.  Some have yet to be found.  Many of those drowned animals are showing up miles away from where they were when disaster struck. Those carcasses will need to be disposed of.

Many farmers must deal with loss of grain stored in bins destroyed in the rising waters.  Once the flood waters recede, what remains is often eroded farm fields riddled with gullies, crop residue, logs and a wide assortment of trash and debris.  Some fields will have sand and silt drifts measured in inches, or in some cases, feet.  Drainage systems in those fields could be clogged.

The economic repercussions of these floods will be felt for a very long time.  Some of the fields will not be cropped at all this year and maybe not next year.  Businesses dependent upon agriculture will feel the pain. 

Damage to infrastructure is extensive.  Roads, bridges and even dams have been destroyed.  Driving to work, to school or to a health care provider is a challenge.

The social impact of floods can be devastating.  The definition of debris is “the remains of something broken down or destroyed.”  Drought can affect people physically and emotionally.  The emotional scars on the people, their families and the communities may never completely heal.

As is the case with most disasters of this magnitude, the grit and resiliency of those who live in rural America and its small communities is carrying them through this difficult time.  There is, in the heart of most farmers, an inherent optimism that seems to know no bounds. 

God bless them and their communities now and in the challenging days of recovery ahead.