- Memories and Musings - by

Julia Nation

The Day It Rained Crawfish

The day was a Thursday in July of 1954 when it rained crawfish in Humble, Texas. To have a rainy summer day in Humble was not unusual. To be able to catch crawfish in the ditch after the rain was not unusual. But this July day was not usual.

Each day, for three days, rain had come down at a slow, steady pace. My dad, who was a farmer, said that if it didn’t quit raining soon, we would be flooded. Our house was three feet off the ground, and there was a hole in the floor behind a door. My mother had explained that Daddy drilled the hole to let the water out of the house during a flood. So, I assumed that Daddy knew about rain and floods.

But that Thursday morning it began to rain harder. Daddy did his usual storm ritual – he went out on the front porch and paced back and forth, saying, “Oh, Lord! Oh, Lord! Oh, Lord!”

My sister and I were in the house listening to him. “Oh, Lord! Oh, Lord! Oh, Lord!” The rain came down harder.

Finally, we went outside to see if we could console Daddy. That’s when we saw THEM! The water was about one and one-half feet deep in our yard and the biggest crawfish you’ve ever seen were all over the place.

There were black crawfish about five inches long; the gray ones had to be six or seven inches long, and the red pinchers were eight inches or longer with four inch claws. They looked like small lobsters. Those crawfish were popping up in the water so fast that it looked like they were raining from the sky!

We surveyed the situation quickly!! We knew what to do. We put on rubber boots and gloves. We retrieved the big Red Flyer wagon from the back porch, and to the front yard we went. We grabbed those crawfish as fast as possible and put them in the wagon. Fried crawfish tails was one of our favorite foods. We knew we would have plenty to eat that night.

We must have had fifty pounds of crawfish when we finished. We pulled the wagon to the back porch, and that night we had our fill of fried crawfish tails. The tails were the largest and sweetest ones we ever had. And we have never forgotten the day that it rained crawfish in Humble, Texas.

Julia Woodyard Nation was born in her home two miles west of Humble. She is a graduate of Aldine High School, but her family was active in the Humble area. Julia received her BS degree from Mary Hardin-Baylor College, Belton, TX. In 1974, Julia and her family moved to Humble where she became involved in a local church and owned and operated a bookstore for nine years. Julia taught in public schools for over thirty years and retired from the Humble ISD. She enjoys traveling and has visited all fifty states. Julia is also a published author. Her book “The Substitute Workshop “ is a preparation guide for teachers and substitutes. For more information on her book: thesubworkshop.com