I find it interesting that when something crazy like a storm passes through our lives, we all love (even need) to share our story. It is pretty cool really that every person has their own take on an event.
I noticed this alot through both fires that our town has evacuated from. When we all got back, everyone had a story to tell. They told where they were when it happened, how they heard about it (or saw it or smelled it), where they went when they evacuated, who they saw, who they stayed with, how well they were treated because of their situation, personal damage etc... Somehow, sharing a common event brought people together. They had something to tell one another and they could, though briefly, relate to one another no matter what their background happened to be.
On Friday afternoon, we had a crazy storm pass through town. It left a bit of a small scale hurricane-like MESS in its path. Many people had damage to their homes, property or cars and it was an unusual flash in time for our little town. I happened to be driving home when it flew through, which wasn't very fun for me...little old lady driver that I am. It felt like a million marbles were being hurled at my car and then I was expected to drive on them. When I (finally) got home there was hail piled all over our yard and deck. The storm ripped leaves and pine needles from their trees and left debris all over the streets and sidewalks. Thankfully there was minimal damage to the trim on our house and that's about it. As I got out of the car, I noticed that there was a fantastic pine scent in the air, a reminder that even something hurtful can eventually bring relief, beauty, even joy.
The fun part about it was that the next morning we had our third and final garage sale of the year, and I got to have a lot of great conversations with people at the sale. Everyone had something to share about the storm. It made my garage sale alot more interesting and really helped the time pass. I got to visit with several neighbors who shared their stories. Several people stood around in my driveway, total strangers to one another, chatting about their experiences. Community.
It got me thinking about how each of us have something to share. It reminded me that we all have a story. Some of us have an exciting wild ride that we've experienced or some have had some damage that is harder for us to talk about. Nevertheless, we all have a need to share what we've been through with someone who will listen. Maybe sharing something personal helps us process all that we've been through, feeling someone else's pain validates our own feelings about an event. Maybe surviving the storm and sharing it with another person helps us recover from the damage that is left behind. For whatever reason, our personal stories become part of who we are and when shared can bring healing, relief and even joy. Do you smell the pine trees? I do.
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