My friend Earl

Wherever you choose to live there is always a balance of elements. In a city, you have access to culture and diversity, museums and fine dining but you have to put up with overcrowding, noise and crime. In the north country, you have long, harsh winters matched with pristine mountain landscapes, cool summers and crisp autumn days rich with a tapestry of color blanketing the hillsides. In the Caribbean, you have warm climates, breathtaking sunsets and an ocean playground coupled with seasonal tropical storms and hurricanes.

Today, we have the threat of Hurricane Earl lurking off to the east. Over the past 24 hours there has been a shift in the energy on the island. People reaching out and stopping by, checking in on neighbors and friends. People I have just met offer to help me prepare for my first hurricane. There is a lot of talk of what to do, where to go and how to deal. And during these conversations the direction always turns back to hurricanes of the past. I see a change in the faces as they recount their experiences. They know each one by name and refer to them as if they are talking about an old friend who died a tragic death, shaking their heads and looking towards the ground. A humbled silence in the words they speak. It's powerful to see the concern and fear build around me. I try to imagine what it will be like. Will I be alone, sitting in my bathtub with cushions piled around and flashlight in hand? That seems a bit extreme and lonely but it's very real. I think I will take up a friend's offer to ride out the storm at his place. He's been through many a hurricane and his house is sound. My house is probably sound too but I am perched up on a hillside, a beautiful spot normally but exposed and vulnerable when 100mph winds are knocking at my door.

I look around me and take an inventory of my belongings. What do I want to protect most? My computer, guitar, photographs? It would be nice to have these things protected, have everything weather the storm OK but it is just stuff. What I really care about right now is me. Fingers and toes, heart and soul, save myself. A coworker said it best, "when it hits, all bets are off, save your own ass and forget about everything else." If I had a family here, a child, it would be such a different feeling. I would be terrified for the safety of the ones I love. To run and hide alone is easy. To carry your family to safety is hard.

I have survived my own storms over the years. The family storm, a tornado that ripped apart our farm, killing my father and putting my mother in the hospital for months. My personal storm, a devastating divorce and having to start over from scratch at 30 years old. Blizzards, car crashes, the death of loved ones too early in life, 9/11. Storms take on all shapes and sizes, sometimes you are fortunate enough to have the time to prepare, to see it coming. And I will do my best to be ready for Earl when he comes knocking.