Musings on This All Hallow's Eve

The kind of debris from Superstorm Sandy
found in our neighborhood: sticks and leaves. 

Evan is out Halloweening with friends, Eric is at the temple, and I am here, slowly putting things back together after we hooked our house up to the generator for our 40 hours off the grid. Every 20 minutes or so a few kids will stop by trick-or-treating. I must confess I've sampled the Reese's pumpkins and the Candy Apple Milky Way bars. Mmm. That's what weekly points are for.

Our power came back on today around 10:30 am and since I had lunch with a friend and ran some errands, I'm just now getting the last of the cords coiled up and stowed and plugging everything back in where it belongs. Eric had little choice when he went generator-shopping on Friday before the storm so we ended up with a rather large one and were able to power many things. It was lovely to not have to worry about food in the fridges. It's also amazing what a difference just a single lamp can make when it is cold and dark. For all the damage in other areas, once again we fared very well and have nothing but gratitude for the ease of our passage through the storm. Our hearts ache for those who experienced the full force of the storm.

A few things of things of note I want to remember about this time:

• Yesterday we had dinner with friends who invited us to warmth and laughter and cooked food. :o) We were welcomed with such easiness and love. What a pleasure to spend time with them and watch Evan be the big brother and have wonderful conversations about ordinary things. Our house was still cold (the generator can't handle the furnace) and it was seriously a beautiful thing to contrast that cold with the coziness of their home. 
• Today was a visiting teaching appointment with my dear friend but my companion couldn't come so instead of a regular appointment, I picked up Chinese food and went over for a nice, long chat. Ahh. So peaceful. She welcomed me to her home with these inspired words: "This is a stress-free zone." When she said that, I realized how tightly I was wound due to worrying about the storm and everything else. It was so helpful to have the spirit in her home literally stop me in my tracks and get me to welcome the day and enjoy the moment. What a needful lesson!
• Tonight I got to stop by and see my pal who just had twins and Holy Cow are those little twinkies still tiny and adorable! Her house is another place that feels warm and welcoming to me. Her sister and mom were also there to help and she let us grab pizza from the box and homemade cookies and things like that. Such wonderful comfort and normal times makes me happy. I don't like to be fussed over, I'd rather come in and just be one of the crowd and at her house it feels that way. Like I belong. What a powerful feeling. 

All of these things are particularly meaningful to me right now because I'm having a little pity-party for myself. Another brother is moving to Arizona (I'm truly NOT sad about that-I'm excited for his new job and the attendant opportunities and I really am happy they will be near the parents and brothers and sisters.) However, in my pathetic selfishness, I do feel isolated way out here knowing that so many of my family will be all in one state. Granted, its a state the size of the entire Mid-Atlantic region, but all but 3 of the 8 will be within a few hour's drive of each other. None of them have reason or means to come all the way out here for visits. It's a little depressing now that my kids are also all so far away. SO, the short story is that being with people out here that I adore makes a huge difference. HUGE.  It really does. It softens the edges of that big empty space in my head and heart and gives Evan (and me) opportunities to feel like one of a crowd again.