Shattered glass…

When tempered glass is broken, it shatters but it clings together as a safety measure.  The people I know and have seen affected by hurricane Sandy look like splintered tempered glass.  They are all put together yet broken by the effects of the storm.

We can all say that they mostly lost “things,” personal effects by and large, but what has this experience cost them.  You see them on television saying they will rebuild or not; some crying; some not; some looking for that one insignificant piece of memorabilia that hung on the refrigerator; but they all look shattered; violently demolished like the homes they once shared.

Yesterday I attended a family party and several members of the family came even though they were victims of the storm.  They came to celebrate a positive event but their eyes were deadened by their own tragedies and their exhaustion was palpable.

As a child, we moved often, mostly because my mother couldn't afford to pay the rent.  There were times when I came home from elementary school only to find a sheriff’s notice on the door with chains forbidding entry: eviction. Sometimes, we stole back in the night to attempt to retrieve personal effects, sometimes not.  I remember the horror of someone, something forbidding my entry into my home.  I remember the loss of safety as my home was taken away.  I remember searching for that one insignificant item that would make me feel better.

I understand the loss these people feel.  I recognize the look in their eyes. I've seen it in the mirror.  I know what it’s like to be shattered glass. 

They need genuine care, human warmth and understanding, and comfort, some of which will only come when they reconnect with their new home environment; when they can feel safe and whole once again.

I wish them peace.  They will never forget how this feels.  They are forever changed. The mirror will never let them forget.