Elections, Storms, Recoveries...

Election day is around the corner in our fair land, and I have to say, I will be glad when it is all said and done.  We will have to live with those on either side who are unhappy with the results, who will whine and fuss that the world is going to end in the next 4 years, and then, for a brief while at least, there will be some respite from the haggling and mud-throwing and hateful comments.  I am very ready for the spirit of peace to descend for some period of time.  Or at the very least, for this not to be the topic on which everyone harps.

This week, the people on the East Coast of the United States were struck by a very unfortunate convergence of weather elements which caused all kinds of horrible devastation, and it has been eye-opening to watch the coverage of that event.  4 years ago, the upper Texas coast was struck by Hurricane Ike, a storm that caused approximately 54 billion dollars in damage overall.  Whole communities were quite literally washed away, along with the people who decided to stay behind when order to evacuate.  Power was out for weeks, downtown buildings were literally shattered and left with files and computers flying in the wind, food and gas shortages were common, cleanup of downed trees alone was a deforestation project of epic proportions. I wish I had been able to watch the coverage of that event, but I was without power for 2 weeks.  At least, though, I would perhaps be able to understand the difference in what is happening there from what happened here.  Or is/was there a difference?  Had the people on the East Coast and their governmental agencies been prepared for what might happen, or did they just not believe?

When disasters and difficult times confront us in our lives, it is the easiest of things to do to want to point a finger of blame at whomever one can.  Easy, but oh so wrong, and tiresome for anyone else who has had to survive those seasons themselves.  Elections come and go, and sometimes "our" people win and sometimes they don't.  Sometimes we are confronted with a series of events that test us  beyond what we could ever expect.  Somehow, though, we seem to put our problem-solving skills to work, and come up with a plan for "next time".  Blame, finger-pointing, mudslinging, name-calling and the like just get in the way of the process of recovery.  I'm ready for recovery.  Anyone else?