This area wasn’t even over the destruction of Hurricane Helene when another freaking hurricane, Milton, hits us directly on the West Coast. I remember waking up about three days after feeling fortunate that Helene didn’t do any damage just to see something in the news about Hurricane Milton. I didn’t stay for this one. This storm had me seriously worried, not that the one just before it didn’t have me worried. After packing up, getting everything off the floor that I could and shutting down the power, a friend of mine and I headed north.
My original thinking was that I was going to head to my parent’s place in Arkansas and wait it out. We headed straight to Tallahassee area and passed out in a gas station parking lot. The next morning I filled up with gas and headed west to Destin. I stopped in a cafe along the way to join in on my Monday morning team meeting at work. After the meeting, I was texting friends and family to let them know my whereabouts. In a full stroke of luck, a friend of mine just happened to have a friend with a condo in Destin that was going to be available over the next few days. My good friend even payed for my stay. You find out during times like these who your real friends are, and this experience was a shining example.
So we went from fleeing the scene to living the dream in a condo on the water in Destin. Life certainly takes some strange turns at times. Not only that, I ended up reuniting with friends I haven’t seen in about 15 years. I used to come to Ft. Walton Beach/Destin area to see my friends there years ago, and we just sort of drifted apart as a result of our changes in life on both sides.
The storm also caused closer relations with my neighbors here in Largo. We helped my neighbor across the street put plywood on his windows. My neighbor next door needed furniture moved into her garage while her husband was in the hospital. It’s too bad that it took a major hurricane to bring us all together. Seems like bringing us all together should be easier. I’m going to remember that in future years depending on where I’m ending up next in the grand scheme of life.
After the storm had passed, I returned to Largo to assess the situation. I was amazed to see that the house looked as though nothing had happened. There was no flooding, no damage, not even tree limbs piled up in the yard. Power and water had already been restored. The only thing missing was internet, and that came back on just in time to login to work the following Monday. After talking to a neighbor earlier today, I found out that the reason the yard was clear was because my neighbor had cleaned it up before I even made it back home after the storm.
The whole experience feels very surreal to me now. I’m back in my home, and if it wasn’t for the fact I have items all in disarray from getting what I could off the floor in case of flooding, you wouldn’t even know anything had happened. I got very lucky once again. In times like these you have to count your blessings. There are times when you don’t feel so lucky in life, or maybe you are comparing yourself to others who seem to be more successful or more accomplished in some way. A lot of people are ready to leave, not wanting to deal with such a disaster again. The only problem is, life isn’t something you can just run away from or hide from to avoid.
Life is going to come at you whether you like it or not. I’m recalling a saying that says, “Live life as though death is looking over your shoulder.” I remember saying this to a couple of friends while we were out on the town one night, and they told me not to be so morbid. They weren’t understanding the point of what that saying is trying to convey. If you live to life as though your next moment might be your last, you will truly live your life to the fullest. After this whole experience, I am re-evaluating how I shall choose to live my life in the future.