Hero or Goat
You know how you want to be a hero for your kids. I could hear the thunderstorms and the rain pounding on our roof for hours last night, so I knew there would be flooding and traffic problems. I got up around 5:00 so I could check the weather reports and school closing reports. Time to be a hero for our daughter, I thought.
On the news I could see the bands of heavy rain on the radar. Roads were flooded, especially in neighborhoods on our side of town and on the feeder roads beside the expressways. School districts on the West side of town were closing for the day, or at least delaying the start of school until 10:00. But not the Houston Independent School District. The TV stations were reporting that HISD was opening as scheduled for a normal school day.
I was at orientation with Cici last fall. I heard the Headmaster tell everyone that her school always does what HISD does. So in the case of inclement weather, just check on what HISD is announcing for school closures or delays and follow their schedule, we were told. Bad news, I told Cici and Ping as I woke them early. School is open and with the flooding it will take longer than usual to get to school. But I kept checking the school closure and delayed opening reports right up to the time we left home at 6:45. I also checked the internet to see what HISD was doing, and even called their inclement weather emergency hotline. All reported a normal school day.
So we braved the rain and the high water. We couldn't get to the expressway using our normal route, so I tried several alternate ways. At one point I told the girls that if we could make it back home I would just do that. I was not about to drive into dangerous waters. We were close enough to the expressway that we could see traffic was moving there, so I cut through a mall parking lot, which was on higher ground, and made our way to the expressway. About the time we got up on the expressway, Cici received a text message from a classmate. School will be delayed until 10:00 today, she said. Soon several other classmates joined the conversation.
Is this true, or just a rumor started by the kids, I wondered. We discussed our options and pressed on toward school. There had apparently been less rain around the school, so the roads were not flooded as we got close to the school. We arrived and could see cars and trucks in the parking lot, so I drove up under the big overhang at the front door. We could see a group of adults talking in the large lobby. Cici's geography teacher saw us and came outside to greet us.
Yes, he confirmed, school will be delayed until 10:00 a.m. The Headmaster was stuck on a flooded roadway and didn't have the code with him, he said, and the code was required if he were to phone in a message to the news media about delaying the start of school. But the computer room is open, and a few other students are here, he said, so Cici can come in and use the time to study.
We had arrived about 20 minutes before the regular starting time for school. Mission accomplished, but at what price? The students with parents who were not as concerned about arriving at school on time probably had happier children, don't you think?
Just as I finished writing this story, Cici called me. Papa, they cancelled school for today, she told me. Can you come and get me?
Well that leaves no doubt about the answer to the title question. Goat.
On the news I could see the bands of heavy rain on the radar. Roads were flooded, especially in neighborhoods on our side of town and on the feeder roads beside the expressways. School districts on the West side of town were closing for the day, or at least delaying the start of school until 10:00. But not the Houston Independent School District. The TV stations were reporting that HISD was opening as scheduled for a normal school day.
I was at orientation with Cici last fall. I heard the Headmaster tell everyone that her school always does what HISD does. So in the case of inclement weather, just check on what HISD is announcing for school closures or delays and follow their schedule, we were told. Bad news, I told Cici and Ping as I woke them early. School is open and with the flooding it will take longer than usual to get to school. But I kept checking the school closure and delayed opening reports right up to the time we left home at 6:45. I also checked the internet to see what HISD was doing, and even called their inclement weather emergency hotline. All reported a normal school day.
So we braved the rain and the high water. We couldn't get to the expressway using our normal route, so I tried several alternate ways. At one point I told the girls that if we could make it back home I would just do that. I was not about to drive into dangerous waters. We were close enough to the expressway that we could see traffic was moving there, so I cut through a mall parking lot, which was on higher ground, and made our way to the expressway. About the time we got up on the expressway, Cici received a text message from a classmate. School will be delayed until 10:00 today, she said. Soon several other classmates joined the conversation.
Is this true, or just a rumor started by the kids, I wondered. We discussed our options and pressed on toward school. There had apparently been less rain around the school, so the roads were not flooded as we got close to the school. We arrived and could see cars and trucks in the parking lot, so I drove up under the big overhang at the front door. We could see a group of adults talking in the large lobby. Cici's geography teacher saw us and came outside to greet us.
Yes, he confirmed, school will be delayed until 10:00 a.m. The Headmaster was stuck on a flooded roadway and didn't have the code with him, he said, and the code was required if he were to phone in a message to the news media about delaying the start of school. But the computer room is open, and a few other students are here, he said, so Cici can come in and use the time to study.
We had arrived about 20 minutes before the regular starting time for school. Mission accomplished, but at what price? The students with parents who were not as concerned about arriving at school on time probably had happier children, don't you think?
Just as I finished writing this story, Cici called me. Papa, they cancelled school for today, she told me. Can you come and get me?
Well that leaves no doubt about the answer to the title question. Goat.
Hero more likely!
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Where did you go, Smitty? I think I was a bigger hero yesterday when Ping and I picked up some food and delivered it to Cici to eat before her band concert yesterday. The look on her face when she saw us was priceless.
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