I’ll be in Texas in 10 days, far away from the Gulf, probably not far from devastation and grief, seeking joy from a little boy but knowing. We can’t help but know, now.

And I’ll know more by then. We can marvel at the sophistication of our weather forecasting and still be just as horrified as we were for Katrina, Irene, or…whatever number of natural disasters I’ve been alive to see or at least know about. Harvey will stick around for years, but in another week we’ll have a clearer picture.

Although the pictures are pretty clear. I can’t imagine, but I can see. And I suppose in some ways I’m seeing the future, at least for Houston and Miami and maybe closer to home. Rising waters aren’t just going to be from hurricanes, not in this future.

…

But I’m going to try to focus on the future I like, at least for the time being, at least for next week. This is what it looks like, and why I’m heading into the floodwaters.