It's like a hurricane came through or something!

Greetings fellow kindred spirits!

I apologize I have not been updating as often as I would like...turns out when you don't have power, you can't really update.

Here's what my life has been like the past week:

My mom came to visit me!!!! It was great having her here, although I'm sorry mom that the circumstances were less than ideal. She arrived on Friday afternoon. I took off work early, and met her at Menno House. We feasted on kale chips, sushi and tea. I showed her around Union Square, we had our one and only encounter with a homeless person, and then we caught a train uptown to see PHANTOM OF THE OPERA.

Mom hadn't been on a subway since the 70s. Getting off at Times Square probably wasn't the best plan for her first subway ride in 40 years, but we did it. It was hilarious. I was walking briskly as usual (in heels I would add!) and mom was overwhelmed by all the lights, people, everything. It made me step back, and see Times Square again with fresh eyes. Yep, it's pretty overwhelming.

After constant negotiations on when to take photos, and of what would be appropriate, we found ourselves standing in line for the Majestic Theater's performance of PHANTOM OF THE OPERA! It was my first Broadway show on Broadway, and I was stoked! Obviously the show was phenomenal, and I would recommend it to anyone :)

The next morning we got up around six to get to the school where I would be working, and mom would be volunteering. Yes, my mother volunteered with me and CFY-NYC! It was a great day, even though we were exhausted afterwards. Mom did a great job volunteering. The staff thought she was training to be a Customer Service Representative instead of being a volunteer! She has some great stories from volunteering. If you have a chance, ask her about it sometime.

Ditmas, the school where we were working, is located in Southern Brooklyn. The neighborhood is predominately Hasidic Jewish, but there are many immigrant families living in the neighborhood too. On this Saturday we had families who spoke Haitian Creole, Russian, Bengali, French and Spanish. Mom did will despite all the diversity! My favorite moment she tells is seeing the pride and admiration in the eyes of mothers wearing hijabs as the watch their daughters do really well playing games involving science and math. I love being reminded of the good work CFY-NYC is doing, and how lucky I am to be a part of it.  

Sunday we took it easy. Little did we know how much we would need our strength in the coming days.

Sandy came in all her glory on Monday. NYC wasn't even hit, yet the city is in bad shape. Menno House lost power Monday night, and power wasn't restored until Friday night. All the flooding images and horror stories you all are hearing in the outside world is not reflective of my experience, Hallelujah! Our house didn't flood. We had water and gas the whole time. We were very lucky. In our neighborhood, some apartments were without water, because they needed electricity to pump water up to the higher floors of the building.

The subways continue to be down. Buses are running, but they are a mess. Walking anywhere is risky, because without electricity, there are no traffic lights. With traffic lights, it can be scary to cross streets here. It is anarchy without the lights! I have never seen nor heard Manhattan so dark and silent. It was like I was back home! We could see the stars for once!

Fortunately, one of my friends lives uptown, and she never lost power. She invited all of Menno House and guests to use her internet and electricity. I don't know how mom would have got home without her kind offer!

Despite all the adventures and bonding time I was fortunate to share with my roommates and mother, I think we are all VERY HAPPY to have electricity back. Mom is ECSTATIC to be back home in Kansas. Thank you for all your prayers and warm thoughts for us during this stressful time.

The city continues to recover, and it will be awhile before it is completely back to normal. I hope in the aftermath of Sandy, NYC begins to think of how the city will look in the future. Hurricane Irene and Hurricane Sandy are our future. These once in a century storms are coming every other year. It's not sustainable for the city to completely shut down like this every other year. It's not sustainable to rebuild on Rockaway Beach or the Jersey Shore if the waters will tear it down in a couple years. The irony is it is our very addiction to the power we lost that fuels these life altering storms. Global warming is alive and well in our world, and until we find alternative solutions to feed our addiction, or wean our addiction altogether, we will continue to suffer. Humans are not invincible nor indestructible. We cannot control our surroundings no matter how hard we try. In one day, everything we worked hard to create can be wiped away, and we are left to pick up the pieces. Continued prayers for the victims of Sandy, the volunteers helping restore the city, and for our policy makers are appreciated.