Beyond That Horizon

The islanders kept reminding us that we were in for a bad typhoon season this particular year. Ken told us that our house may float away or be swept into the lagoon. I thought he was kidding, but his face showed otherwise. I had never been in a severe rain storm before and didn’t know what to expect. We had cloud bursts in Idaho, and that is all I had to relate to.

The day the storm began seemed normal enough except for dark clouds that were forming overhead. It was unusual because for nearly three months, we had been driving to the airport for our only source of water. There had been no rain in this tropical paradise. Pita seemed anxious and went outside to position the gutters angled off our tin roof. These slanted into our water drums sitting in front of our house to catch the water.

Without warning, the rain began. It was as if someone in the sky was pouring bucket after bucket of water – a major torrent. Within seconds, 18 inches of water was running as a river in front of the house, finding every conceivable path to the lagoon below as it ripped past. I was afraid to go out as I knew I would be swept off my feet. With this rain came thunder and wind – big winds that would tip you over if you didn’t have a hold of something sturdy. The house shook and quivered but held. I was happy it was built on stilts and the torrent could just run underneath and away.

“Well, I surmised, no more trips to the airport for water!”