One slightly unexpected side effect of dealing with hurricane season is that it sometimes throws those of us in the newspaper business into a bit of a "tizzy." I'll let you in on a little secret, if you promise not to tell anyone. As I write this, it is actually Tuesday afternoon. Because the weather is supposed to be really bad tomorrow (Wednesday), we are frantically working to get Friday's paper done on Tuesday, instead of Wednesday. Have I completely lost you, yet? If so, welcome to my world.
The point of all that was not really to confuse you about what day it is, nor was it to divulge any newspaper trade secrets. The real point is, by the time you read this on Friday, or possibly Saturday, the storm will have already passed. I don't really know what kind of problems the storm will bring. I hope and pray that it will be rather minor for us. But regardless, whatever problems we face because of this storm or any other storms life may blow into our paths, we can surely make it through. I firmly believe that.
I overheard one of my co-workers say earlier today that he feared that someone was "going to lose everything." My first thought was, "It's just stuff." I've had my fair share of "stuff" before. There have been times when I've probably had too much stuff. Often there are times when there is some stuff that I'd really like to have. There have also been times when I've lost some stuff. I admit, I wouldn't mind having some of that stuff back.
But, if I had to be completely honest, stuff isn't nearly as important to me anymore as it once was. Whatever importance I once placed on stuff, I gladly replace that with a much greater importance placed on folks. There have been times when stuff has made me happy, but the folks in my life bring me joy. There is a big difference. I would much rather have permanent joy in my life than the temporary happiness that stuff can bring. It is my sincere prayer that no matter what the next few days might bring, each of you will have more joy; even if you don't have as much stuff.