After…
You reckon with your mental mettle when the threat of a hurricane is imminent.
To be clear, in Central Florida, we were beyond lucky. While the Bahamas has been utterly gut-punched, we mercifully dodged that bullet.
However, a week ago there was still much uncertainty.
Vestiges of Irma remained. Folks were uneasy as we altered cancelled Labor Day plans, stockpiling necessities as well as sundries.
We saw to thangs.
We took precautions.
Many boarded their shits all the way up.
And then… we waited.
One eye obsessively glued to the Weather Channel, the local news, Twitter.
Updates! We need UPDATES!
For me, the other eye buried in a book. Finished An American Marriage sitting by the pool. Welcome weight of the sun.
Felt oddly guilty for stealing what you are convinced will be your last moments of leisure & comfort for the foreseeable future.
I took the time to tweak some recipes I’ve been working on.
Ran the oven & air conditioning with abandon, knowing both would soon be inaccessible.
My Jamaican Meat Patties have always been good; but now they are GREAT.
Same with Pickled Deviled Eggs.
Snickerdoodle Bars.
Unfussy comfort food.
Enjoyed my man, my dog, and some cocktails.
In fact, were it not for Dorian’s threat, it would have felt like a vacation of sorts.
Thankfully, by the time the storm finally it, much of its impact had diminished.
Rollin’ in…
Much time to write.
I’m working on a short story about the mad dash for water & gas before the storm.
A cluster-fuck of tomfoolery for sure, but just beyond that, humor.
Much time to reflect too.
Thinking hard about my Mom. We had been in Florida less than 30 days before Irma two years ago. And while we were both calm during the storm, the following week, in absence of the daily routine she had come to rely on for mental stability, she struggled.
Would she have wanted to move back to Missouri so soon if not for Irma?
I am not sure; I suspect not.
Would she still be with me?
Who can say?
I’m still wading thru the emotions conjured by Dorian, far more climactic than the storm itself.
But at this time, in this moment,
I’m good.
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