Welcome to November, the month of Old Souls Day and Thanksgiving, but here in the Northeast we are still reeling from the full-moon arrival of Superstorm Sandy which caused so much damage heading into Halloween. Last year we had Irene, the fifth costliest hurricane in United States history, who still leaves her mark, including towns that no longer exist. This year it was Sandy who wreaked unprecedented havoc on places like lower Manhattan, Coney Island, Breezy Point, and the Jersey Shore. Scientists reportedly have been warning New York City officials for ten years that due to global warming and the rising ocean temperatures that intensify storms, levees were needed along the coastline. Now, in the wake of Sandy, perhaps City officials will listen. Governor Cuomo has proposed levees to protect New York City.
Fortunately and thankfully, I live on the upper west side of Manhattan where you would have never known Sandy had passed thru. Still I can relate. It’s a time to come together and help your neighbors. Attitudes change in crises like this, even among New Yorkers. I remember so vividly after 9/11 when people at the airports were telephoning their families, friends, and significant others, and saying when they could finally get through, “I love you.” It struck me deeply then, as it did during Sandy, how life can change so dramatically in just a moment. Makes us realize how precious our lives are, and why love is so important.
Doing what I do, I have seen so often that people who have lost their loved ones focus on all the “woulda, coulda, shoulda’s” that suddenly become impossible. Sandy will bring that out. She caused over a hundred deaths. Not to mention the thousands upon thousands of homes and cars that were destroyed. While those material possessions can be replaced, the physical presence of a lost loved one cannot. However, we need to remember that although our bodies pass away, our spirits live on. As does the love we feel for those we have lost, and their love for us. The soul is real. Love never dies.
This coming Thanksgiving, for those of us who were fortunate enough to have escaped Sandy’s wrath, I would suggest that we not only be thankful, but also share whatever we can with others less fortunate.
In my journeys this month, I look forward to connecting with those of you who can attend my event at the Edgar Cayce facility in Virginia Beach. I’ll also be doing another “Hope for the Holidays” in Roanoke, and revisiting my soul family in Connecticut. Please visit my website for the details.
