Sandy

Well, Sandy has come and gone - and left a great deal of devastation in her wake.  Thankfully, Lar and I ( and our families ) got none of it but the frightening thrill of hearing those wind sounds - like massive trains barreling by (and sometimes through) the house!  Looking at the pictures from the Jersey Shore brings tears to my eyes.  Everything that "down the shore" means to folks around here has been ravaged.  Lovely homes, and humble homes - cars, properties - moved, turned, destroyed.  Beaches, so faithfully kept up and reinforced, eroded, changed.  Bridges - torn away, broken, some gone.
Entertainment - roller coasters, ferris wheels, vendors - the stuff of magic for children...destroyed.
It is such a wake up call for humans when nature stomps through and reminds us that we do not actually "rule" it.  We are here to enjoy, to reside, but not, certainly to control.  
And, in the end, although Sandy has left some deaths of humans behind, most of the devastation shown in the paper, on tv and on-line is of "things."  Those things meant a great deal to their owners - perhaps meant a life time of struggle to obtain.  But still - "things" not loved ones.  
So another day dawns and we each one begin to pick up - pick up branches, pick up detritus, pick up our normal routine, and we must remember to be grateful.  Life and Nature are mighty landlords - and if they do not take away, for this moment, what truly matters, then our hearts should swell with gratitude.
And we must hold dearly in our hearts those who have not been so kindly dealt.  If there is some kindness one can offer - one must - for if storms like this show us anything, it is that we are tiny beings, powerless, together - all in one boat, hanging on, depending upon each other.
Live gratefully, live lovingly, and, as my Grandma used to say, "don't get too big for your britches!"