I have been thinking about writing this post for a couple of weeks. I didn’t know if it was one I should actually write and share but today I may just hit that publish button. We will see.

A lot of things have happened and progress made since Hurricane Helene came to Western North Carolina what is now over a month ago. There has been a lot of progress with road reconstruction and debris removal. Power has been restored to most places and life has begun to be lived again in a somewhat normal pattern.

But we are definitely not okay.

Being in a disaster, or even on the fringe of a disaster, is life changing.

The week that our power was out was a blessing in sorts because I did not see the devastation or hear the stories. When we had access to those things again I honestly decided to limit myself to not binge watch every single report and story because it was just too much. It definitely does not mean that I don’t care. It means that I know my limits.

While Chris and I suffered very little due to the hurricane, we keenly feel the impact. We know that what we endured were minor inconveniences but for others there was devastation and life altering consequences. Even loss of life. I have read some of those narratives and they are heart breaking. Absolutely heart breaking.

I think many folks look at people who work in crisis assistance organizations and think they are impervious to all the things that they have to deal with. They are not. They are feeling all of the stress and strain of the job plus trying to deal with their own crisis. It is wearing. It is exhausting and many are running out of steam. It is relentless and no matter where they find their strength, they could all use some extra kindness about now.

There have been massive fundraisers that have been organized including a concert in Charlotte over the weekend that netted over $24 million for hurricane disaster recovery. Our own town of Brevard, NC had a free community concert with hometown favorites The Steep Canyon Rangers as well as The Travis Book Band.

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Chris and I were out of town or we would have been there along with what appears to be all of Transylvania County. What a great thing.

But we as a community and county and state continue to struggle. Those of us who did not feel the wrath of the hurricane as much as others may feel somewhat of a survivor’s guilt type of feeling. It’s natural. Not that we want bad things to happen but the question is often why we were spared when others weren’t.

I am so happy that there are resources made available to all who may be struggling a bit. Two such things that warm my heart are the following.

What a wonderful thing to be able to receive some free online therapy. Mental health care is a real need right now and I am so happy that this is being offered locally.

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The other thing that I am excited to share is that there will be a free community meal where those that go will be given a chance to share with one another in a sense of community. Sometimes it just takes someone else to offer a listening ear, to share a story and to be able to respond to that story to make a person feel so much better.

.Co sponsored by Spark Point and my favorite local non profit Sharing House, this will be a wonderful time for folks to come together to share stories over a meal and to just come together. What a wonderful community we live in. If you are interested in hearing a bit more please click here and hopefully you will be able to watch a short video that explains a bit more.

Bit by bit I hope we move the needle from “we are not okay” to “we are doing better”.