Thank you so much to those of you who've reached out about the flooding in Central Texas

Obviously, I’ve taken a bit of a break from blogging—and from Reddit. After the one-year anniversary of everything, it felt right to let things breathe for a while. And with the Fourth of July coming up, I was really looking forward to a lighthearted holiday here in Arizona.

But just as we were getting ready to celebrate, we started getting messages that serious rain was expected back home in Texas.

Let me say this up front—because I never want to leave people hanging in suspense when I build a narrative: everyone in my family is safe.

The worst parts of the storm and the most devastating flooding happened about an hour northwest of where I grew up. But even though the Texas Hill Country is a big area geographically, it's one of those places where everyone is connected. Everyone knows someone who was affected. The bonds run wide and deep—through extended family, friends, church, school, sports, and of course, the Guadalupe River.

I’m trying not to personalize this too much, but here’s some perspective: whenever I’ve written about river parties or those late-night drives with Bubs, I’m talking about the Guadalupe. So while we weren’t directly hit, it still feels deeply personal. I scroll through photos online or watch the news and see roads completely washed out—roads I’ve driven on hundreds of times. One of the images going around was taken in a yard where I went to a graduation party just last year. They’re friends of my parents, and seeing their yard as the “before” and “after” the flood made my heart sink.

As I’ve mentioned before, we still own our house back home, and we’re renting it to my sister-in-law and her fiancé. During the worst of the storm, she sent pictures. Within about 30 minutes, our backyard had three inches of standing water—and it probably got a little worse before it got better. It was startling to see, but we were incredibly blessed. That was the worst of it, for us.

I know others weren’t so lucky.

I’m still trying to process it all. There’s grief, even from a distance. And there’s guilt, sometimes, for being spared. But mostly, there’s just this heavy awareness that life can change so quickly—that familiar places can be swept away in a single night.

Thank you all so much for reaching out. As you can imagine, my inbox is a bit of a mess right now, so if I don’t respond right away, please know how much I appreciate you checking on my family and me. I know we’re internet strangers—but your kindness means more than you know.