hurricane sandy

 

Broken branches crashed against the windows as the wind howled.

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I lay under the blankets, covering my head under pillows trying to silence the fear.  Wishing that Ray, who always held me tightly during storms, had not died the previous month.

 

Storms had terrified me all of my life. When I was three,  shaking and sobbing as the wind  raged outside, my mother wrapped me in her arms and said, “Katerinshin, it’s nothing scary.  Do you know why there is lightning?  It’s God taking pictures of people below.  So sit up straight and smile, dear.” I sat up,  forcing a grin in order that the photo of me would look good to God. 

 

With every storm, I had someone to hold me.  I had never faced a storm alone. Ever. 

 

Now with the approach of Hurricane Sandy to Maryland, I worried how I would weather it. I told myself that I was now 74 years old. It was time to grow u p. I could do it. I had to do it. I purchased and cooked enough food to last one week. The predicted day came and I was so stressed that I literally ate three days worth of food.  At around 5 PM I phoned my next-door neighbor asking the 15-year-old if she were willing to babysit me should I become too frightened. 

 

“ Mrs. Haas, would you feel more comfortable if you spent the night at our house?”

 

“No, thank you, sweetie. I want to grow up.  I THINK I can withstand this storm. I just wanted to know if  I became too frightened whether you’d mind canoeing across your yard to my house and keeping me company.  I’ve never been alone in my life.”

 

She laughed and agreed. I felt safer already. Actually, several friends had invited me to spend the night at their homes but I was determined to prove to myself that I could conquer this fear.

 

Because I had stuffed myself all day, I felt sleepy around 7 PM and went to bed.   The storm was just beginning to rage.   Soon I fell asleep. At about 8:30 PM the phone ran

 

“ Katherine,” Margaret, my friend in North Dakota said, “I was just watching the  5:00 news … are you okay?”

  

“I’m fine, in bed.” 

 

“ Oh, sorry to wake you. Glad you are okay.  Love you.”

 

Attempting to ignore the storm outside, it took me a while to fall asleep again.

 

Around 10 PM another friend from North Dakota called.   And then once more around 11 30  as each friend watched the late-night news about our storm, they’d call me to make sure I was okay.

 

Now I was wide awake. As pounding debris landed on my roof aching to be let in, I lay in my bed muffling the sounds beneath a mountain of pillows.  There, in the dark, I mulled over the numerous concerned phone calls and the tender offers to house me during the storm.  I came to realize that Ray was not the only one who provided me with warmth and comfort.