Hurricanes, Holidays and History

I hope you had a great weekend. I really hope you were one who had a long weekend. It wasn't exactly the holiday a lot of people had planned on. If you are in the path of any hurricanes or have been in the path recently, I hope you have not and will not suffer.

I have a couple of friends who got married the weekend before Labor Day. They went down to Orlando for their honeymoon. They have been stuck in Orlando since Hurricane Frances decided to scream through their lives. Luckily, they ARE on their honeymoon and they found plenty to keep them occupied. ;-)

But seriously, my friends are okay and are actually on an airplane (finally) to come home. They've already told me they are sooooo tired of rain. But at least they have a honeymoon they'll never forget. They can be sure of that!

I try to live my life by the principle of "There is always something good out of anything bad that happens". It's kind of a 'silver lining' lifestyle I guess. But it works for me. And if you ask my wife, she'll tell you it's a little contagious. She finds herself doing the same thing.

So what's the good that comes from the destruction and annihilation of a merciless storm?

LESSONS FROM THE STORM

1. When good people are called on, they will come running every time... with a smile. Reach out and lend a hand. What you may find in the beginning is apprehension, procrastination and/or dread. But once you put your whole heart in to helping others who really need it, your spirit will be lifted and you will experience a kind of pride that you will only experience when you're giving. Giving is a gift. But you receive the greatest gift when you give the gift of giving. Got that?!?!

2. Things are never as bad as they seem. No matter what happens to you, you can always look down the way and see someone who is worse off than you are. Chances are you at least know someone who knows someone that is struggling with a part of life that you never dream. And deep inside, you pray you never have to. [Refer to #1]

3. There's always work to be done. Work is a blessing. Did you know that keeping busy with a goal in mind can work your mind is such a way that it helps keep you from becoming depressed? When the mind is at work with a purpose, it is not dormant enough to become depressed. Not to mention, you can earn a bunch of money doing it. There will be a lot of people with opportunity for work in Florida. [Another silver-lining life moment.]

4. Thankfulness always follows destruction. If you were to take a poll of those who were hit the hardest in these last couple of storms, you would find people who are thankful. No. They're not necessarily thankful that they got hit. But most everyone you would find thankful, would be thankful that their most precious possession was unscathed. You would find those who were most thankful were those who still had their friends and family to hold them up, to help them through. [Refer to #1]

5 If you absolutely have to be in the middle of a hurricane, do it on your honeymoon! [Another silver-lining life moment.]

So what next? That's right. Another hurricane... possibly. But it doesn't matter. Even if the next one reaches the shores of America, it will eventually have to pass through. Then history will repeat itself. People will help people, we will refocus on what we're thankful for, and then, we will get up brush ourselves off and get back to work.

Always, focus your life on what really matters. If you don't, you will. Devastation has a way of making you. It did me.