Getting back to Normal Somewhat after Hurricane Maria
Well, things are sort of falling into place somewhat. It's a new normal. My sliding glass door is still broken but I have made some headway. At least, I ordered some new doors and windows and gave a deposit so the work can get started. The only problem is that the windows and doors will not be ready till May! That is the amount of work that it is backlogged! When I ordered the windows and doors they said, 14 to 16 weeks till installation! That is a long time.
On another note, my church already has electricity which is a delight. The services are back to the regular hours. We don't have to have a doubled up service. The unity in the bilingual gatherings was wonderful but now we have more room and the air conditioning is on, thank goodness. That doesn't mean everything is hunky dory. We have had a couple of power outages and just yesterday when I got home there was no water. After a couple of hours though the water came back. Gracias a Dios!
On the other hand, things find their way to be discussed. Last Friday, I had the opportunity to visit a Bible Study, I had never attended before. Before Maria, I would have just gotten in my car and breezed over to the Bible study but post Maria, you have to be a bit more cautious. There have been more than 400 cars have been stolen and one hundred forty people have been murdered since the first of January! Carjackings are taking place as well. So getting to a ride was a blessing!
Once we got there we had a lovely time chatting and then dinner. The hostess was so happy to see me that I almost cried. We had intelligent conversations discussing the lesson. Afterwards we also had some wonderful conversations but to my surprise this was the first time in five months after Maria that they had a chance to talk about their experience through the hurricane and talk about how frightening it had been. One of the gentlemen works for the NWS. He talked about the hurricane as the most knowledgeable person because he was keeping track of how the air pressure was fluctuation and the winds. He was pretty sure the eye must have gone over his house. He knew what was going on the whole time. It didn't change the fact that some of his windows blew open and water came in though! He also recounted how the earth shook with the force of the wind and the air pressure.
Others talked about how the water drained out of their toilets and then burst up like a fountain later. I didn't have that experience exactly but I did hear the toilet gurgling. I did not like it. It was spooky. I didn't know what was going and what to expect next. It took me back to the event. I am still surprised I was able to sleep through the most harrowing parts of the storm. I guess I was so tired. All of this surprised me. I had expected all conversations and story telling about the hurricane would be over by now but they are not. When you drive down a street, there are still trees down, mangled trees still standing, new growth on what look like a water brush trees. Many trees have lost their branches and leaves are sprouting close to the trunk. So the hurricane is still on people's minds. There are a lot of people from the States still here helping out so we don't forget. I am grateful. Most everyone that is smart and in need is grateful.
Back to the Bible study, I was able to tell my story. It is amazing how little we know about each other’s lives if we only see each other in passing. I am so glad I went.
On another note, my church already has electricity which is a delight. The services are back to the regular hours. We don't have to have a doubled up service. The unity in the bilingual gatherings was wonderful but now we have more room and the air conditioning is on, thank goodness. That doesn't mean everything is hunky dory. We have had a couple of power outages and just yesterday when I got home there was no water. After a couple of hours though the water came back. Gracias a Dios!
On the other hand, things find their way to be discussed. Last Friday, I had the opportunity to visit a Bible Study, I had never attended before. Before Maria, I would have just gotten in my car and breezed over to the Bible study but post Maria, you have to be a bit more cautious. There have been more than 400 cars have been stolen and one hundred forty people have been murdered since the first of January! Carjackings are taking place as well. So getting to a ride was a blessing!
Once we got there we had a lovely time chatting and then dinner. The hostess was so happy to see me that I almost cried. We had intelligent conversations discussing the lesson. Afterwards we also had some wonderful conversations but to my surprise this was the first time in five months after Maria that they had a chance to talk about their experience through the hurricane and talk about how frightening it had been. One of the gentlemen works for the NWS. He talked about the hurricane as the most knowledgeable person because he was keeping track of how the air pressure was fluctuation and the winds. He was pretty sure the eye must have gone over his house. He knew what was going on the whole time. It didn't change the fact that some of his windows blew open and water came in though! He also recounted how the earth shook with the force of the wind and the air pressure.
Others talked about how the water drained out of their toilets and then burst up like a fountain later. I didn't have that experience exactly but I did hear the toilet gurgling. I did not like it. It was spooky. I didn't know what was going and what to expect next. It took me back to the event. I am still surprised I was able to sleep through the most harrowing parts of the storm. I guess I was so tired. All of this surprised me. I had expected all conversations and story telling about the hurricane would be over by now but they are not. When you drive down a street, there are still trees down, mangled trees still standing, new growth on what look like a water brush trees. Many trees have lost their branches and leaves are sprouting close to the trunk. So the hurricane is still on people's minds. There are a lot of people from the States still here helping out so we don't forget. I am grateful. Most everyone that is smart and in need is grateful.
Back to the Bible study, I was able to tell my story. It is amazing how little we know about each other’s lives if we only see each other in passing. I am so glad I went.
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