Our Mother, Catalina Chavez, passed away on Tuesday morning 8/4/26 and Cris and her sister had to fly out to Texas at the last minute on Tuesday evening. They went to make arrangementsand to gather her keepsakes. I stayed to take care of the rescue and Vet Clinic as we currently cannot go on trips together. I got to Facetime Mom when she was still able to talk, and she said she would watch over me along with her other kids. That meant a lot to me as I do not have a mother.
Cris was having to deal with a whirlwind of emotions and then we were dealing with a real storm that suddenly manifested here. I was texting Cris as she was asking how our new rescue dog Greta was doing and a huge burst of wind, rain and hail exploded past me. I was struggling to close the front door and lock it. It came out of nowhere. It was a microburst and everything went white. I could not see but a couple of feet in front of me. I got the door closed and my heart was racing. I was worried about all the animals and hoped they were in their enclosures. The burst subsided but the pouring rain and hail continued.
I continued to text Cris to tell her what was going on and send pictures. Cris has the cameras linked to her phone, so she sent me a video from the back porch of the microburst. I went back out on the front porch and could see the horses were in the barn and the alpacas and llamas were in the mare motel. I ran to the bird house and the floor in the back was covered with water. It has a new roof, so I am not sure where the water was coming from, but the rain was going sideways. The birds and two cats were fine. All the dogs were out of the yard and on the enclosed back porch or in the house, so they were safe.
The wolf hybrids were standing on their hind legs looking at me like “what just happened?” They were not injured either and there was sheet metal strewn all over the yard from the recent building projects. The large very old Mesquite tree in the front was uprooted and leaning over. I ran back to check on the Emus, and they were hiding under a tree but were unharmed. Their food bucket was full of waterlogged pellets and meal worms. I dumped it out and would give them fresh food later as soon as the rain stopped. I could not believe no one was harmed. The porta potty at the building site also flew and was on its side, but I did not mess with that. Cris called the company to have it picked up right away. One of the trees lost all its branches and looked stripped down to just the trunk.
Damage from the storm
The ironic thing is that I have just turned on a documentary about climate change and severe weather. It was saying, the more the planet heats up, the more violent the storms will become and unpredictable. Good thing, the clinic is a block building and the structures for the animals are secure, but even so, it could have been a lot worse. I couldn’thelp but think Mom and Grandma were both watching over us. Mom was talking with Grandma just before she went to sleep and then passed away. Grandma did the same thing with her mother speaking to her and I was able to be there for Grandma with Cris. I got to experience a close-knit family that helps each other cross over gently and loves each other from both sides of reality and the afterlife.
It was comforting to me because I work with and see a lot of suffering and sickness in animals. I do my best to alleviate their pain and sickness and give them the best life possible. But it is a very stressful, difficult job that never ends. It was reassuring knowing Mom and Grandma will still be with us.
Saddened by the loss of Mom. My sincere condolences to you both .