‘Did you feel that? Is there a big truck going by outside?’ asked my colleague at the office of SpiritualityandPractice.com, where we were working last week. Sure enough, the building was shaking. As I walked out of my office on the 10^th floor, my stomach felt a bit queasy and my legs somewhat unstable. The shaking continued for a few seconds, and we suddenly realized that we were having an earthquake. ‘Wait a minute! We don’t have earthquakes like this in New York City!’ exclaimed my colleague. Surprise! It had just happened.

A couple days later, we heard the frightening news that mega-Hurricane Irene was heading for New York City – that it might be a direct hit. ‘Not possible! We don’t have serious hurricanes hitting us here – well, not after we just had an earthquake!’ we mumbled to ourselves.

Nature certainly has its little and big surprises – things we can’t control and that shock us. But what also surprised me about those two unusual events was the way the people of New York City seemed to rise to the occasions. When a reporter asked Mayor Bloomberg at a press conference before the hurricane hit if there would be extra security forces to protect the City from looting, the Mayor quickly answered, ‘This is New York City. These are New Yorkers. We don’t think that way.’ Such a positive and optimistic response.

Yes, we are New Yorkers and, when needed, we are able to come together in a sense of community and service. The events of the earthquake and the hurricane reminded me of the days and weeks after the traumatic events of 9/11, when New Yorkers joined forces with each other and became a true community in order to deal with that overwhelming tragedy. (I’ll be writing about the 10-year anniversary of 9/11 in next week’s blog.) I was amazed at how many people called one another to be sure they were okay, knocked on their neighbors’ doors in apartment buildings to check on one another, offered to share food and water, invited elderly people to join them for the night, volunteered at shelters. It gave me a sense of calmness and peace – that indeed we were responding as God’s children and we were in God’s hands. When I went to bed the night Irene hit Manhattan, I fell into such a deep sleep that I missed the storm and was surprised in the morning to find that it was almost over.

As Irene left Manhattan with only a few remnants of wind and rain remaining, I felt grateful that the City had not been devastated. But I also remembered those who were suffering because of Irene. As I watched the sun set over the pounding waves in the Hudson River, the clouds were moving very fast in more than one direction, and the sky was painted with the most spectacular purple and red colors. It seemed like God was trying to give us a brief opportunity to see some of the beauty in nature’s surprises.

God of Nature, we are surprised by the devastating power that we see in hurricanes and earthquakes. We are afraid of that power and we ask for your help to be courageous as we face it. Help us to remember that we are a community of Your children, that we are here to serve You and one another – especially in times of trouble and need. Let us never forget those who suffer. Amen.

Joy Carol

www.joycarol.com