After the Storm

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There were so many things that happened after the hurricane hit Mississippi, so many thoughts I had, so many ways that my life was impacted... it's hard to put it in words now. Especially since it has been so long since I've been able to write about my life.

Things that happened to me:

• I was without power for nine days in Mississippi's August/September weather and at first I was miserable. But later I just got used to it, plus I had a battery operated fan--praise GOD! I really don't feel like I suffered without power, in fact, some of life was easier. I didn't worry about how my hair looked because I couldn't do anything about it. Letting it dry naturally had to do and it was okay. Plus, it was a lot easier to get ready for work! I decided that I could live without electricity. Now, hot water...that's a different story....
• I liked having my windows open all the time--it made me feel closer to my neighbors and I knew what was going on in the neighborhood.
• I saw how fragile our social infrastructure is... Gas, food and water became a precious commodities here, with people waiting in line for up to four hours just to get $20.00 worth of gas and tempers running high. I was thankful for our police force and I felt safer because they were visible at all the gas stations and at night.
• The New Orleans situation... I won't even go into that, except to say that I wish things had been handled differently, with more force from the authorities against the evil doers. But again, what a message about the fragility of our society and how spoiled Americans are.
• The day after the hurricane I was at work, because the lab is considered essential. I was one of the few who could actually get to work. Many people couldn't physically get to work because trees blocked the roadways. That whole next week was spent addressing the problems we knew we would have to deal with and the ones we were dealing with. Contaminated drinking water, infectious diseases from the contaminated drinking water, water borne illnesses, food poisoning, mosquito borne illnesses like West Nile and SLE... and more. The coast of Mississippi is a third world country and Americans don't know how to live with third world country problems....

It's been three weeks since the storm and my life is pretty much back to normal except where my work is concerned. And although I am glad for me, I haven't forgotten that thousands of lives are still completely disrupted. No home, no job... or at least no power and water.

I have been anxious ever since the beginning of September. Anxious about money, anxious about life... Very aware of what I don't have... security in things, security in people, security in money. I have been thankful for what I do have... my job, my house, my church... Not that I couldn't lose those things, but that I haven't lost them. In my weak moments I have found myself wishing I had a man to depend on, someone to share my fears with, someone to lean on. No matter how much my head understands that I wouldn't be more secure with a man in my life, my heart won't listen. Sigh.