Ryan’s Journal: Uncomfortable Situations Can Bring Comfort
by Ryan Pew
Last week I wrote about Hurricane Irma bearing down on my home state of Florida.
It was a scary time and brought a dose of reality to life that is not often seen. Through the experience I had a chance to view the before and after effects on people and thought I would share.
In my post I mentioned that there was a mad dash at stores for food, water and fuel to prepare for the arrival of the storm. It tended to be everyone for themselves and as a result was a bit chaotic.
In the interest of safety and because I have lived through several hurricanes, I took my family and left.
The trip we took normally calls for about 8 hrs of driving, but in this case it took 12. Roads were clogged, gas stations were packed, when they had fuel, and everyone was heading one way, north.
The trip was not scary, but it was surreal.
We took a back road highway as the interstates were turning into parking lots. We also drove in the dead of night and it was still packed.
Small towns with one open gas station had traffic jams. People were driving in emergency lanes and all toll roads were suspending payment for evacuation purposes.
This all added to the overall discomfort.
I knew my family and I were safe, but when I left I did not know how my house would fare or if I would have a home to return to.
The great news is we suffered minor damage to a fence and that is about it. Others weren’t so lucky.
How does this bring comfort though?
I spoke to my friends throughout this experience and truly felt closer to them.
Strangers have been open and people are helping.
Now that the panic of the storm has passed folks are banding together. Because I was gone my neighbors that stayed watched over my home and sent picture updates after tot show the results.
It has been rewarding to be surrounded by a sense of community and love.
Now I know times like these are sometimes short lived, but the memory of it can last a while.
I would never suggest that you suffer a major tragedy to experience this sense of belonging.
But I will say I am grateful that I was.
Image credit: Taber Andrew Bain
