A hurricane came to Florida this week. So, I thought I would share my first hurricane experience with you.
Monday: First of all, for me (and this is definitely a personal choice NOT a recommendation), I cannot listen to too much of the news. The way the newscasters sensationalized the storm, I had to fight my mind to not get scared. I know that they have their reasons for reporting the news the way they do, but it doesn’t work for me. On the other hand, ignoring the news isn’t good either. When a hurricane is on the horizon, I can’t pretend that it’s not there and refuse to hear anything about it. So, I try to get the facts without the hype, which is usually secondhand from my husband. This day was bright and sunny. Hot as usual. The hurricane seemed too far away to worry about. I didn’t do too much in the way of preparations.
However, we had a prayer meeting that evening. The leader said, “There is a lot of material published about what people are supposed to do to prepare for a hurricane, but none of it includes praying.” This spoke loudly to me because I had not been doing much preparation or a lot of praying. I guess I was kind of thinking that if I did not acknowledge the hurricane, it would go away. Generally speaking, that never works! I began to pray more fervently after our meeting and immediately felt a calmness about the situation.
Tuesday: I wrestled with the idea of how much preparation I should undertake. Afterall, I had been praying a lot. Would my prayers direct the hurricane away from Florida and it become a non-event? In that case, I’d feel silly doing all this work. On the other hand, if I did no prep work, and it turned out to be a significant event, I would be sorry. I got quiet and decided we should do what was necessary to be prepared. My bathrooms are now full of potted plants and the garage is full of outdoor furniture and gear. Now, this was more of an undertaking than I anticipated because there was more stuff to move than I realized, and it all had to be precisely arranged to fit in the space available. At the end of the day, my husband and I were exhausted, but felt like we were as ready as we could be for whatever was coming our way.
Wednesday: I spent most of the morning with one eye on the weather outside. Being fairly new to Florida, this is my first exposure to what could be potentially life-threatening weather. My husband said that when you know a storm is coming, the waiting is sometimes the hardest part. After the preparation is done, there is nothing to do but wait for the storm to start and then wait for it to be over.
It was definitely overcast in the morning and when the rain started, it was fairly steady. The wind began to gust at a level that seemed forceful to me (Little did I know!). Still, for most of the day, it wasn’t too bad. As evening approached, conditions began to escalate. The rain became more copious, and the wind began to howl. Our house is very solid, there was no shaking or rattling, but I could still sense how strongly the wind was blowing. We watched the news about the storm. It had made landfall around Naples and Fort Myers. This time watching the news was not scaring me, it was a call for more prayer. With nothing more to do, we went to bed.
Thursday: We were awakened around 2 a.m. By this time, the storm was upon us. The wind has intensified and sounded like a freight train rolling down the tracks. It came in waves or bands of varying length and volume. My thoughts were surprisingly tranquil as I listened to the sounds. I think I wanted to experience the event a little bit. Soon though, I decided to spend my time praying for our safety and protection, and that of our loved ones, friends, and neighbors. It was quite a while that I prayed before drifting off to sleep again.
The morning light brought the opportunity to witness the aftermath of the storm. The sky was still quite overcast, and it was still raining with periodic large gusts of wind. But compared to the sounds of the night, this was very tame. There was little damage. From our yard, we could see about a dozen of our neighbors. All the yards were littered with leaves and twigs and an occasional branch, but no trees were down and there was no apparent damage to homes. All I could think was, “Thank you, God.” I was humbled to know that God had provided for us in such a marvelous way.
I spent most of the day on my phone checking on friends and loved ones and responding to those who were checking on me. Everyone was breathing a sigh of relief and being thankful that the storm had passed. There was great comradery having weathered the storm together. There was great appreciation for the way God had answered our prayers. We were knit together because we all had come through what could have been a very devastating circumstance, and we were all okay. There was no end of praise to God for His mighty arm that He bared for us.
The day also brought more news of the hardest hit areas of the state and the destruction that lay in the wake of the storm. In addition, the storm was still impacting the east coast. Of course our hearts hurt for those folks and made our rejoicing a little bittersweet. But as it says in the delightful poem by Alice P. Moss, “God’s bank ain’t busted yet!” We Floridians are a hardy bunch, we will rebuild.
Friday: Today is beautifully sunny and clear. The temperature is much cooler than the sweltering heat of summer and the storm seems like a distant memory. We went out around town today for the first time. There are varying amounts of damage and some power outages, but people were getting on with their lives. It was actually gratifying to see the resilience and determination that people have. I am in awe too of the stamina of the greenery in Florida. Palm trees that were blown for hours to an almost 90 degree angle, are straight and unscathed today. The two ‘birds’ on my bird of paradise are unharmed. Of course, many trees were lost, and landscaping was damaged, but for any tree etc. to have survived the storm seems amazing. I have renewed appreciation for the sunny days of Florida that were gone for four days. And I praise God for His excellent greatness.
My first hurricane taught me that I don’t need to be afraid. It taught me that we are stronger together than we are alone. That there is nothing is too hard for God. And that we cannot underestimate the power of prayer. I am very thankful – period!
Note to my readers: Please continue to pray for the folks on the southwest and northeast coasts of Florida. Sure do love you! Thanks for reading.