Hurricane Matthew

a hibiscus/ (choublak )flower in the rain

You have probably heard that Hurricane Matthew has caused a lot of devastation in Haiti today.  The storm hit the southern part of the country and did a lot of damage there.  I am living on the opposite end of the country and so far we have not experienced anything that could be considered hurricane conditions.  All day, it has been damp and cloudy, with light intermittent rain.  There is almost no wind, not even the typical tropical breeze that lightly blows through on most days.    It seems now that the storm is passing to the west of us, although weather reports indicate that there is still a possibility that we may experience some hurricane conditions. If we get anything at all, in all likelihood it will not be anything like people experienced in other parts of the country.   

 As the storm approached, in general, my family members, community members and many friends in the United States seemed to me to be more concerned about the possible approaching storm than did many of the people here in the potential path of the storm.  It is interesting to observe individual and cultural differences in how people respond to such situations.  It worked out well, that today (Tuesday) is my day off and that I have had a relatively good internet connection most of the day so that I could easily respond to emails, phone calls and messages reassuring everyone that I am fine and all is well here.  You remind me of how fortunate I am to have loving community members, family, and friends.  Thank you all for your thoughts, prayers, concern, and well wishes.   My heart goes out to all of those who have been affected by the storm; they are the ones who most need our  prayers, thoughts, compassion and concern. 

Schools were closed yesterday and today throughout the country because of the storm.  I suspect they will be closed tomorrow too, maybe for several days.  Elections are supposed to take place here on Sunday; I am wondering if and how the storm will impact people’s ability to vote especially in areas most affected by the hurricane.  It does not take a lot of rainfall to make travel difficult in Haiti.  Most of the roads are not paved.  Muddy flooded roads, and puddles the size of ponds can make it impossible for people to get to school, work, medical treatment or polling places.  

A flower (whose name I do not know)  in the rain.  ( Give me a break; I know the name of the flower at the top in both English and Creole) so if you know the name of this flower (in any language) please share it; leave a comment.  Thank you!    

Have a good week!   Many blessings!