Dear Houston, Texas: I Will Never Stop Loving You

The past three weeks have felt like a bad movie about the end of the world brought on by hurricanes.

Together, Americans watched the devastation that both Hurricane Harvey and Hurricane Irma wreaked upon two beautiful states. But one of them hit a little closer to home for me (literally).

My sweet hometown of Houston was ravaged by Harvey a little more than two weeks ago, and as someone who lives 2,000 miles away in New York City, I found it incredibly hard to watch the coverage. I didn't realize it would have such an emotional impact on me, but I can confirm I have feelings, and I was feeling all of them.

I had a trip planned to visit home when Harvey hit, which I had booked a while back. In the days following the storm, those plans were obviously disrupted due to airport closures. I was fortunate to make it home soon after and felt so sad for my hometown when I landed. Driving from the airport to my parents' beautiful suburb of Sugar Land, TX, was the longest 45-minute car ride I have ever been on. I found myself staring at my city, the place I was born and raised, absolutely mesmerized by the devastation. I found myself in awe, blankly staring at my surroundings like a tourist gawking at an unfamiliar city. The car ride with my dad was incredibly quiet, which is very rare.

While my parents were #blessed not to have any major damage to their house, we have many family members and friends who have been devastated by the wrath of this massive storm. We've all seen the reports on the extent of damage and how many families have been displaced, so I won't dive into all that. This is more about what I experienced in the days I was home after the hurricane.

It's often said that Texans are a proud bunch of people, and that's still a massive understatement. What I experienced being home this time around was something I've always known but needed a refresher on. I'm not a proud Texan because of the food, although you can't find better queso anywhere (and that's not up for debate). It's not because of the honey butter chicken biscuits from Whataburger or the fact that it's home to Texans football and the Rockets NBA team. I realized I am proud because of how much I love my city and the people who call it home.

As soon as I got settled in, I wanted to help out in any way possible, and to my surprise, I was turned away from three different shelters — because they had too many volunteers. If there's any problem you want your community to have, it's that one. Even after all the terrible inconveniences that folks had gone through, they still just wanted to help out their neighbors, and it was a beautiful thing to see.

I found solace in the people of Houston and our very own hometown heroes: shout-out to Mattress Mack for using his massive showroom as a shelter for people in need, Texans player JJ Watt (#99forlife) for raising $30 million in relief efforts, and the countless others who endlessly rallied together and reminded everyone that it's not just about being strong, it's about being #HoustonStrong.

My life and who I am as a person will always be somewhere between backyard bonfires and big-city living, but just in case there was ever any doubt, Houston: you have my heart.

Wondering what you can do even if you aren't on the ground? Here's how you can help the victims of Hurricane Harvey and Hurricane Irma from afar and aid in the long road to recovery.