Hurricane Irene

Guess what, you guys? The edge of Hurricane Irene's storm is supposed to graze us here in Southeastern Pennsylvania this weekend.... it's supposed to hit hardest along the coast, and as far as 40 miles inland, from North Carolina all the way up to New England. I'm not afraid to admit that I'm a little bit nervous about this.


The last time that the edge of a tropical storm grazed us, which was earlier this summer, the wind almost took me into the neighbor's yard, and the screen door got ripped back, almost off the hinges. The pneumatic arm pulled out of the door frame, and the door was shoved out to the other side of the metal awning that covers the back porch. It was crazy! And those were "only" wind gusts of around 60 mph. This one is supposed to have 100+ mph winds. Scary, right?


Now, we just had an earthquake in the area a few days ago... I didn't feel it, but other people here DID feel it. I can totally handle an earthquake. Especially one that's only 5.8. However.... hurricanes are another story! I'm not familiar with them, and so I'm getting a little anxious. It's all I can do to NOT turn on the weather channel and feed into the panic that this force of Mother Nature is currently generating.


I'm going to acknowledge my fear, and then get on with the plans I made for today. It's all I can do. As a matter of fact, the weather at the moment is lovely. There's a bit of fog outside, and there's no wind.... the sun is peeking out of the spaces in the clouds. It's really quite calm. I'm planning to bake a pie today, and then I will go to the post office. It's all good. When things around me get ramped up to fever pitch, I ask myself, "How do I feel RIGHT NOW? What is going on in my experience RIGHT NOW?" The answer at the moment is that RIGHT NOW, everything is peachy keen, Jelly Bean! So I have no reason to panic. In fact, K just went to the grocery store last night, and we're stocked up with groceries. We have flashlights with good batteries, we have candles and matches. We're prepared in case of emergency, so panic is ridiculous. If I weren't prepared, then now would be the time to GET prepared, not to panic. The trick is to focus in on THIS moment, and not to let other people's drama freak you out.


With that being said, I'm going to leave you, dear friends, and bake a delicious Lemon Meringue Pie for K's birthday! I'm going to enjoy my cup of coffee, and make myself a nice breakfast. I hope that you're staying calm in the midst of the chaos, too. Remember not to waste the present moment. It's named "the present" because it truly is a Gift.


xoxox