If Nature Was A Mother There Would Be No Hurricanes

Thought for the day: Having just had my electricity restored late last night, I am just beginning to see the images of devastation from Hurricane Sandy. I saw bits and pieces at the comfort station on the internet while dealing with the minor issues I faced on my property & with staying warm. I have been thinking that the term, "Mother Nature," is a misnomer. When we see the beauty of nature it seems appropriate. However, if nature was a mother there would be no hurricanes, tornadoes or earthquakes.

Now that I have power, I have been seeing & reading posts by New York Says Thank You Foundation & others in areas hit harder than me. Here's a post from NY Says Thank You's Facebook page today: "QUICK UPDATE: Robin Levitin and Jill Smilow made 200 PB&J sandwiches for us to distribute in the Rockaways and dropped off the box at my house. Josh and I just took some of the sandwiches to distribute to people on the gas line at 96th and West End Ave. The 4th car was a woman from the Rockaways who has been on the gas line since 6:30AM who asked me how many sandwiches we could spare for her to share with her neighbors in the Rockaways?. WE JUST FED 200 PEOPLE IN THE ROCKAWAYS BY GOING TO WEST END AVENUE AND 96TH STREET. Think Global. ACT local. " NY Says Thank You is one of the NPO's featured in my book & I am not surprised to see how they have jumped into action to help.

Today was the first day that I could reflect on what has been happening. Other than to be friendly & helpful when I could in my community, I did not have the energy much more than observe & write a bit on the blog & facebook. I found making photos with inspirational comments was the most I could do (two are shown below). Today, I spoke with some people about helping as a psychologist in my area & possibly preparing a video that could tell other towns about the creative ways they met the challenges for this community. I described them in my last post, but cannot praise their efforts enough. The small town of Weston serviced many other towns around here with meals, beds, showers, movies & activities for children, & busing for the elderly from here & the surrounding area.

It is too soon to report about it in detail, since there may be another storm in two days hitting the region with rain & snow. However, I will be telling the story in the coming weeks. Weston CT which has been hit three times with major storms in the last year & a half took over when nature has reared it's un-motherly wrath & nurtured the community with grace, creativity & amazing organization.

I'd love to hear how you & your town are faring & meeting the challenges that the storm has given you. If you are not on the northeast, how have you helped? Our maternal instincts can help our neighbors recover from the wrath of nature's un-motherly side.

Whether the Glass Is 1/2 Full or 1/2 Empty Make The Most With What You Have Left

Photo source: wimo.blogg.no

Thought for the day: Before the storm I saw a similar photo which I posted on facebook. In light of Hurricane Sandy, the thought has additional significance. Be thankful that you still have a glass and that there is something in it. Some people have only broken glass and their lives, otheres have lost loved ones as well as homes & belongings. If you were fortunate enough to have more, be the glass & contents for your neighbors, friends & strangers. Adversity leads to creative problem solving out of necessity. I'll be sharing some of the creative ways people are helping one another here in my town, but I'd love to hear other ways you & your towns' innovative ways of coping with the aftermath of the storm.

As I reported on facebook, I was lucky. Although we lost power & are still in the dark at home, there is a lot of light coming from the town & neighbors. This is the 3rd time in the last year and a half that CT has been hit by extensive power outages. The last one a year ago left us without power for 2 wks.  Because of the extended power outages in the past, our town was ready to jump into action.

The morning after the storm a tree on my street was cut so that one lane of cars could get by. There were however hundreds of streets impacted by fallen trees. Yesterday, when we came to the "comfort station" set up at the high school, I realized how happy I was to see wood chipping & landscaping trucks all over town. I also saw CLP crews working everywhere I went. The license plates of electric crews were from KT, TX, CA and even Canada.

People are helpful wherever you go as well. On the 1st day after the storm while we worked to clear a tree from our mailbox & driveway,  a neighbor we had only met once stopped, brought their chain saw & helped us cut both trees. Since we only had a hand saw, they saved us hours of labor.

The town comfort station has hot meals for $2.00 to $5.00, hot showers, power strips & tables set up for people to use the internet, for children, the gym, a ping pong room, all the fields outside & movies are being aired a few times a day, & water is available for all to take. Last night, since the temperatures were forecast to go into the 30's they also provided cots for residents to sleep at the high school.

Today was the first time that I actually looked at some of the damage in other parts of the northeast & is is upsetting to see. I feel lucky that what I am dealing with is minimal. If you are reading this & can become part of the glass or the contents of the glass for people who have suffered greater losses, do what you can. Even a call & words of support may help someone get through these tough times.