Gratitude After the Storm

Navigating through the aftermath of a harsh summer storm, I found an abundance of reasons to feel gratitude, even amidst the chaos.   
Here are my reflections on the support and resilience that transform adversity into an opportunity for thankfulness.

My Musings

After a harsh summer storm, the worst I have experienced since moving to the Ozarks, I find myself brimming with gratitude.  While on the outset, that might not be the first emotion to be felt, but it should be the one to dwell upon and to linger.

I'm thankful for our home, my sturdy fortress that stood valiant against the storm.  Even without electricity, it shielded our family from the fierce winds and torrential rain.  The storm was unsettling as I found myself caught up in worry about the trees bending against the wind, the items starting to fly across the property, and what it could withstand.  I am thankful to be proven wrong by its steadfast protection on this day and so many others.

We awakened to calm but sticky hot air returning, and chainsaws had begun to sing in the distance giving testimony to the reality of the aftermath.  Trees are down, there is no power, we are exhausted from restless sleep, yet we are called out of bed to act.  How bad it it?  Are the animals safe?  What scene are we about to stare down through sleep filled eyes?

I am overwhelmed with pride for a husband willing to load up the chainsaw in the truck and head out to help clear roads and check-in on neighbors.  

The morning after the storm, as strangers in the coffee shop compared pictures of the destruction while waiting for a warm cup of coffee, a sense of shared experience and mutual gratitude resonated with me. 

My heart swells with appreciation for my friends who offered space in their freezers for my perishables and the loan of their mobile generators for power. In the wee hours of the night and well into the next day, the social media groups that sprang into action, their digital presence a beacon of hope and helping each other regain our bearings. 

I feel a sense of thankfulness for the community clean-up efforts. Those dedicated individuals worked tirelessly to clear the downed limbs and ensure that everyone could return to work safely.  It no longer mattered whose tree or fence, whose road it crossed, it was down and it was something they could help fix.

And, of course, there were the first responders. I'm always grateful for their commitment as they directed traffic amidst the chaos, providing a sense of order when it was most needed.

Perhaps a too often unsung hero in the storms, our local linemen.  The men and women who worked through the night while the storm still raged, and long the following day enduring relentless heat while their bodies near exhaustion.  As each family cheers at the arrival of their power returning, may we remember those who made it possible. 

I'm appreciative of those who opened their homes to those in need.  Today that meant allowing me to use their showers, their internet, and their air conditioning. Their kindness added a touch of normalcy to the added chaos this Monday became, and for that, I'm grateful.

In these tough times, the shared sandwiches and the hot cups of coffee were more than just food and drink. They held a sense of warmth and solidarity that filled my heart, a symbol of community resilience that deepened my gratitude.

Furthermore, the text message check-ins and friends driving over to ensure people in the community were okay is a reminder in a world that would try to divide us for countless reasons, the reality of genuine concern people have for each other.  

So it might just be a freezer of food that was saved, or it might have been the reminder of the goodness of humanity that someone needed to see.  May the storms that rage bring us closer together and remind us what is most important.

After life's storms, remember to "Give thanks for everything." - 1 Thessalonians 5:18


How has your community come together in times of adversity, and what moments of unexpected gratitude have you experienced in the wake of a storm or other challenging situations?

Information courtesy of Echo Schneider

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Meet Echo Schneider, Chief Adventure Officer

 
Overworked, burned out, and with waning loyalty to an industry that had lost its way and was no longer true to itself.  Of course, career burnout was at an all-time high in my sector and amongst the worst in any field.  It wasn’t all even just about work, though my perfectionism often got the best of me there more than other parts of my life.  I look back and see that I was overwhelmed and questioning so many areas of my life.  Was I doing the right things? From diet to products I bought, from how I was involved in the community to time I was spending with family, and from how I was walking out my faith and showing up in a meaningful way to my world. In this craziness is where I found myself.
 
Healthcare (watch my fingers make air quotes as I say that word and use the term loosely at best) in the US had long been bought and paid for and was no longer masking their symptom management and disease maintenance focus.  It had lost its focus on health; they could give you a pill or cut you open.  But to nurture your health and foster your body’s God-given ability to heal itself, they no longer knew how to do that.  Or worse, no longer desired to be in the business of prevention and healing.
 
As so many professional people were doing in the modern economy, we, as healthcare professionals, we’re doing more with less.  Mandatory overtime, poor ergonomics, and complete lack of an environment to practice self-care were the norm.  And to make it worse?  Because of our specific industry, we added in a loss of our medical freedoms just to stay and do our jobs.  The days of job security were long gone, and I watched in fear as friends and colleagues in sectors across the board were being laid off just to help top leaders move the stock up for shareholders.  How terrifying that this could be the reward for lifelong dedication and hard work!
 
At home, it didn't feel much better.  I fought to find a non-existent work-life balance and to be present while feeling exhausted (have you ever come home from work to fall asleep on the couch and finally be awoken when your Mom calls? Tell me this isn’t just me!).  I was disappointed in myself seeing my self-care fall away, time with friends and family slipping by, and I wasn’t spending the time I wanted serving with my church family or in my community.  
 
Add to that the confusion and frustration of what should have been simple daily choices.  What foods should I be eating? Is this trendy thing something I should try?  Wait, is the product good or bad, I paid more for it, but I feel like I saw an article on them that there was a recall or they were green-washing.  So frustrating and such a time-suck trying to keep up and have the health and abundance our family deserved!  I felt like at every turn that I was running to keep up and felt like I ultimately just found more of the same lies in the name of profits, and more ways my health was ultimately paying the price, yet again.
 
How could anyone thrive in this culture when even those who were well educated and seeking out something better faced with such daunting challenges?  I know, first-world problems, but I longed to create something more, a legacy for myself and others.  To break generational chains and I knew I wouldn’t be able to do it stuck in this rat-race.
 
Set the stage for that something.  I have, for so much of my life, been interested in learning, growing, and being a student of personal development.  From an investment with top leadership development companies through their programs for years to Law of Attraction to Conscious Language and so many others, I was finding the mentorship and teaching I needed to make the changes I so desperately desired.  
 
There wasn’t an overnight shift or an immediate awareness to change, but I began to find my path slowly and as a result, was investing myself in new ways.  I was raised by a wise and visionary Mother who had shown me what it was to be an entrepreneur.  I always admired that title and was drawn to it in many ways.  As I dabbled in businesses from my youth through college and beyond, I was picking up pieces of freedom and a stage where I could work for myself to create something new.  
 
As the years went on, I kept pushing myself in that path.  I was helping others, and I was welcoming a team of like-minded friends and family to come with me.  This was possible; we were doing it!  It wasn’t easy, we were doing a side-hustle while still being full-time professionals and wives and Mothers, but we were doing it none the less.

I'm so excited to have found a platform to speak truth. To show up for others in "true health" in ways that I didn’t know could exist when I started down this path.  But I know now that we don't have to settle any longer.  Any of us, friends!  It's time to live the great adventure that you were made for.
 
Now it’s time to move beyond business beyond vocation.  Now we are building a blessing.  That has so many meanings, one being the definition of “a herd of unicorns,” in case you didn’t know.  I was given the title of ‘unicorn’ from a dear friend when she came to know me and saw what I was capable of achieving.  And now it’s my turn to see that light in you.  Join me, and together, we can create a community and movement with a vision to change it all.
 
I don't care what your background is.  What education you received growing up in business, finances, or medicine.  Those things don't matter.  We are walking a new path to freedom in all areas of our lives.
 
I'm writing a new future and destiny for myself and my family, and I won't journey alone.  A mentor taught me to carry the confidence that God has called me to rise, but I will not rise alone.
 
I'm reaching out my hand to you (don't worry, I recently used a plant-based hand sanitizer) so that you are not alone; we will do this together!  
 
You are so worthy.  
 
Your family and your dreams are worth it.  
 
Together we can do this, but you must take the first step. ðŸ‘Š

I can't wait to connect with you via text, email, or on social media!

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