Hello all!
Long time no speak, but for different reasons. Those of us in Daytona have had a crazy past week, dealing with the preparations for Hurricane Matthew.
My week started off great, preparing for the career fair. I had all of my documents ready and printed, all of the companies I wanted to visit, I had my introductory speech, etc. I was ready, probably over prepared for this career fair. I was SO excited. I had several events with Gulfstream throughout the week and I couldn’t wait to be able to help such a fantastic company pick new full-time and intern employees. It’s the least I could do for what the company has already done for me.
We all knew that there was talk of a hurricane over the weekend, but we never really looked into it. It was more like a figment of my imagination rather than a full monster-sized storm. I pushed it out of my head and just hoped for the best. But with just my luck, that hurricane would turn to ruin my career fair and call for an exciting week and weekend.
Wednesday came around, my plan was to just stay in Daytona, no harm, no foul. I had several people telling me several different opinions of my staying in Daytona. Some were begging me to stay, some were begging me to go out of state, and others just wanted me to go west. I was so torn and I ended up just deciding to stay – alleviate some of the pressure of moving so much stuff. I wanted to stay with my friends and at first that was my biggest priority. Then the storm came.
Come Thursday morning, classes were already canceled for the rest of the week and I was pretty content on just hunkering down and handling it all myself, like an adult. I slept in, made breakfast, was watching the news, when all of the sudden the campus was evacuated. I had promised myself that if campus was evacuated, I evacuated. I started to panic, starting looking up local shelters, calling friends and family, asking for ideas. I was a disaster at first. I couldn’t think because all of a sudden, this so-called storm became a total nightmare. I had to pack up my car, grab food, water, and any other necessities. But where was I to go? Do I shelter in Daytona, go to a family friend’s house? I just sat for a few minutes and thought “what in the world do I do?” Luckily my boyfriends family came to the rescue and I swiftly packed up my car and sped off to Tampa (going against several people’s opinions). But in a crisis like I thought I was facing, I had to do what was best for me and take advantage of a thankful opportunity.
The weekend in Tampa was bliss compared to the alternatives. I had homecooked food, a comfy bed, great company, and relaxation. I honestly couldn’t have picked a better option for myself (I just wish I had head out there sooner!).
Now that I’m back in Daytona, it’s heartbreaking to see the damage that our city and county has endured. It’s hard to believe how much damage was created and how much rebuilding is left to do. It’ll surely be a long time before Daytona gets back to its usual self, but I have to get to my usual self by Tuesday, when classes start again.
Power and water is on and I’m doing laundry and homework, pretending that everything is just about normal. I’m anxious to hear about my exams and homework that I was preparing for and what will happen to all of these due dates. I can’t wait for everything to be back to normal! Is it sad that I’ve actually missed school?
Anyway, there’s my week and weekend story. Let’s see what this next week has in store for us!
Pray for those affected by Hurricane Matthew in Cuba, the Bahamas, Haiti, and the US. Pray for their families that everyone may find peace and restore back to normal quickly!
Until next time, blue skies!
~ Emmy
