covid changed me, you read that right. that's when i changed. i changed my outlook, i changed our routines, i changed our home! i changed a lot of things because it changed me and somehow makes me see the tragedy that occurred in the state of NC last week differently. there is perhaps a little bit of aging in my outlook too, don't get me wrong, but i am forever a different person as the years pass. i am not the same as i was last year and i won't be the same next year, i am certain. but it's these types of life changing events that make you sit up and realize. it. could. all. be. gone. tomorrow. and if you don't realize that, search asheville, boone, saluda NC….they are proof. the things we get up everyday to do on our to do lists, they don't necessarily matter. yes, i am a firm believer in a purpose, when my feet hit the ground every morning i go through my to-do list in my head, BUT it could change any minute of any day and we have to know what is important and what REALLY matters.
covid changed me by seeing my time, my family and my faith are the reasons to get out of bed! it is not going to a job that annoys you or perhaps even a job you love. it is not to make the next amazon purchase. it is not about the next lavish vacation (that one stings a little-because i love an island view). it is not about any of that and I have never believed that more than seeing people's homes literally floating away. it could be mine, it could be yours. we have to know there are things that are more important than the “things” we are currently living for.
we live in the house my grandparents built in 1973. we just put in a new driveway, it was the last big piece to our puzzle, it has taken 15 years. but it was completed a month ago and when i saw the pics of the places we have visited, the places we have hiked, the places we have enjoyed– DESTROYED, it could have been us. it could have been that driveway we worked for years trying to pay for. it could have been the hard work my grandfather spent building our home. It could be gone. and if that does not make you stop and think. it should.
in the midst of this tragedy, it was more than fitting at church sunday there was a speaker-pre planned-about “no more”. his focus was on a budget, not overspending, not living for “things”-right up my alley, although brooks does love to remind i still do overspend (at times), but i promise you, i am changed. covid changed me. “things” are not the important part of life. we must say no more, more often.
i don't know the right answer to the destruction that is less than 60 miles from us, but i do know those people that survived this gut wrenching tragedy. are changed. i will assume they only want their families and their homes back as they were a week ago. i will assume the things that filled their homes were important, but not as important as the safety net their homes provided with their families intact.
covid changed me. hurricane helene changed me. are you changed, yet?
much love, alysha