Social Awkwardity

Whoa now! Another post…so soon! I can’t.

Mind. Body. Spirit.

A little over three weeks ago, Hurricane Michael hit really close to home. Like, geographically, really close to home. Yes, I live in North Carolina but let me be super real with you right now, my home will always be where my mama is. Mama is in south Alabama. But my brother, the sibling that literally stole the good-lookin’ parts of our gene pool, lives in Panama City, Florida. As you can imagine, as the storm was barreling towards the panhandle, I was a ball of nerves. I kept the coverage up all day, as if it would make me feel better.

I’m no stranger to hurricanes. I was born and half-raised in south Florida before moving to Alabama where my raisin’ continued until completion (this type of talk would be much more entertaining if you could actually hear how I say it in my head). Needless to say, this one gave me the same icky feeling Katrina did as I continued to follow it. I kept in touch with my family as much as possible through the whole thing and once I was assured they were okay, I continued to keep up with the news coming out of the panhandle.

When my brother returned to PC, we didn’t hear from him for a few days. Cell service was out so this wasn’t a surprise. When I finally was able to talk to him, a whole new level of emotion hit me. See, my brother is a tough guy *eye roll* and like me, when affected by serious things that hurt a little, he leans towards the getting angry at life side of things. But that wasn’t the case this time. I could tell he was shook by what he was surrounded by which, in turn, shook me.

And out of the debris arose The Fixer Alisa!

I booked a plane ticket with what miles I had left and told him I’d be there shortly. I found somewhere to offer what I could, which wasn’t a whole lot. At one point in a full day of volunteering, I ended up at a small retirement community helping these 2 precious seniors who literally just moved to Florida from Pennsylvania. Welcome to the sunshine state, friends! Their tiny little place had suffered some damage caused by their neighbors place being ripped up and thrown into theirs. Some debris put holes through their walls completely. Because I’m not a contractor, all I could do is seal the holes up for them until a professional could fix it correctly. And that was the extent of all I could offer. Just my two hands. I wish it could’ve been more.

I endeavor to never be a thoughts and prayers person if I have the means to be a go and do person. Do my two hands of contribution make a dent in the enormity of it all, no friggin’ way. I am a tiny, helpless person in the big scheme of things. However, I taped up some uncomfortable holes in an elderly couples new life so the damage couldn’t get worse.

That’s also why I vote.

Go vote.