As many of you are now no doubt aware, Hurricane Jimena hit Santa Rosalia square on. With winds from the east of upwards of 90 knots and an enormous swirling surf, the safety of the boats was by no means certain. The safety of ourselves was by no means certain. Just as I’ve been told that telling a particularly harrowing birth story can make the whole thing easier to put behind a woman, I’ve been using writing to work through my own issues regarding this experience.
I never promised that Toast Floats would be a strictly accurate, autobiographical account of our cruising life. It is probably pretty clear that many of the articles are somewhat fictionalized exaggerations. I take liberties with the order of events, the exact dialog, stretch the truth a bit. I attempt to interweave current, topical bits with stuff I may have written months ago and like to have a least three weeks to two months in the blogger queue in case I can’t get online. And while I enjoy writing the informational articles with tips and ideas on how to cruise, I mostly use Toast Floats as a way to have fun, to explore a style of writing which is the antithesis of the regimented, formulaic composition required of my profession.
However, I’m afraid this time my own needs are going to take precedence over keeping Toast Floats a humor blog. I need to get this stuff out of my system before I feel I can move on or write about anything else. So for the next month or so, I’ll gradually write, edit and reedit the hurricane related content. Most of the content is autobiographical, some a technical post mortem of what worked and didn’t work, much of it serious and a portion of it highly emotional. I thought to mix it with the lighter pieces I drafted while on the road with my family in the United States, but I think I'll just get it over with instead. It’s probably going to be a bit of a slog for long time readers who usually expect a chuckle from their toast-feed.
Please be patient with me. I’m a resilient, irrepressible personality. My mommy told me so. I’ll get back to the fun stuff sooner than even I probably think possible at the moment.
6 comments:
Get it all out girlfriend. The cat 1 hurricane that swirled through here 6 years ago left me full too -- only full up with a new baby. Yup, my boy is a hurricane babe. He now has a perfect storm swirl of little boy peach fuzz hair on his mid-back that looks exactly like a hurricane on satellite photo. Crazy...
Several years ago, after a harrowing incident in my family, a wise person told me I had to tell the story until it bored even me. Only then would it lose its power over my soul.
So tell away, Toast. We'll stick around until you're ready to move on (no rush!). I just wish I could listen in person with that other well-known therapeutic, tea and cookies.
And hey, did I say how glad I am you made it through? Yes, glad.
Looking forward to hearing it all, Toast. For those of us who have never been there, done that it will be good to know what was going on down there and what the feelings were at the time.
It will be good to know what worked and what didn't work.
Toast, you are experiencing a stres reaction. As an old counselor to military vets(vietnam), we called it combat stress reaction (csr) when it was new and fresh. After ten years or so, it was called PTSD. Now-a-days, every stressful event seems to get called PTSD. REgardles, talking it out and writing it out is the best therapy you can do. I fully agree with Bethany. "Tell it 'til it bores even you".
I would add one thought. Be certain to include the girls opinions as well. Like you did when you did the one year op-eds with each. They will need to process as well.
Bless you & yours dear Toast, M&C
Tell on Toast. I too have always woven humor into my blog. With three "special needs adoption" children, I NEED humor. But over this past summer, "The Summer From Hell," I lost my fun-self. I just needed a place to vent - preferably not at my kids or ill husband. And I found my (very few) followers not just forgiving, but supportive.
So glad you and the girls and the kitty and Don Quixote are safe. Many blessings to you all!
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