Hurricane clouds have silver linings.
Yesterday, we Florida Panhandle residents stayed glued to our television sets--or radios, when the power went out--as the second major storm in ten months made a beeline for Pensacola. Those of us to the east watched with a mixture of spared relief and guilty sadness as Dennis roared past and slammed into our friends. For the past week we made preparations. We made our evacuation plans. We stocked up on bottled water and batteries. We gassed up our vehicles and bought plywood to board up windows. Then we waited...and waited. After the storms last year, we knew the drill so well that we got ready well in advance, and that included running around helping others get ready. As we waited, we pulled together as groups of families and friends, ate, laughed, fretted a bit...and thanked God for each other. The phones rang off the hook all weekend, but it was a good thing. "Hey, y'all okay? Stayin' or leavin'? Need anything? Let us know. Be careful, stay safe."
It wasn't near as bad as we were expecting and prepared for. Almost disappointing. Almost. Maybe the next storm will give me the opportunity to put the uniform back on and shoot looters.
