Too much rain!

Wishing that it would stop raining is just as effective as wishing it would rain. Watching the water rise as the rain comes down, however, has an immediate and panicky helplessness that a dry spell lacks. We can water the garden if the rain isn’t as frequent as we’d like; we can’t stop floodwater from filling the low spots and encroaching on our vegetables. Monday was a day of helpless watching and waiting as shower after shower swept over our land. There was a time in midmorning when it rained as heavily as it did when we were in Houston in April. And the puddles grew and grew.

I put on my Wellies and went out in the late afternoon. The garden was still mostly above water. The pumpkin leaves had gotten huge in the two days since I’d last been out.

The flood around the wetland and into Terry's trees

I couldn’t make it around the wetland without getting water in my boots. I took a picture of my boots and ended up with a reflected self-portrait in the shadow of the umbrella.

Self portrait (see shadowy image in the shadow of the umbrella) with umbrella handle

I slowly walked out of the deep water so as not to create ripples that would go above my boots and headed down another path. The path along the west side of the property next to the creek was flooded, but not very deep until I was about 15 steps from where it got shallow again. At that point, my desire to see the creek overcame my inclination toward dry feet. I charged ahead.

This is not the creek; this is the west path, complete with its own current

The creek was up to the very top of its east bank. The railroad side is artificially higher for the tracks. The current was swift. If only the rain would stop, the creek would carry the extra water away pretty quickly. If only the rain would stop.

This is the creek

It did stop late in the day. We’ve had two mostly dry days now. With any luck, I can start weeding the garden tomorrow. It surely does need it. The amaranth and crabgrass has been growing as fast as the pumpkins. Fingers crossed.