The Great Divider, Uniter: Nature-al Force(s)

Post-to-post, your unseen host: As I was a-musing myself about my most recent post, about both the serious and lighter sides of what can divide, conquer, or unite US (see 12/18), I realized I had this other partially completed post, one I needed to return to after taking a break...a break prompted by nagging hands...nagging hands that were in turn an acute reminder of how the forces of nature have throughout history both divided and united US as neighbors, communities, and on a larger scale...nature-al forces that can eventuate in minor inconveniences (such as when we had to call a plumber on Christmas morning!), interruptions of various resources we take for granted, to major calamities resulting in loss of thousands of precious lives...forces of nature that can either force US 'Inside Out' or 'Outside In', depending on the nature of nature...

Earth, Wind, and Fire: Not only one of my favorite musical groups (who defy a genre, easy categorization, as well as standing up to the test of time, natural forces of aging), but also a reminder of the 3 out of 4 major forces, elements of nature (water, of course, which "always wins", being the 4th and only neglected in the band's name by the originator, Maurice White, due to his Sagittarius nature, look it up). Even taken individually, these elements are each a sufficient reminder to US of the awesomeness (?!) of the source of their force, but collectively and in combination...WOW!!! Like when an earthquake eventuates in a tsunami (in our family room when our grandsons create it, along with "hot lava!") and wild fires...what chance do WE/US have against such incredible forces...forces that can either work for US when we manage to harness them throughout our collective history (as in the ancient mariner harnessing the wind to sail, cave dwellers gathering around embers for warmth), or against, when WE find ourselves vulnerable, fighting back against Nature-al forces...

Westerly Exposure, My Own Backyard! A return to the primary force behind this post, which was actually, literally, the result of getting 'un-posted', the result of gale force winds around here -- while they paled in comparison with those of tornadoes in Kentucky concurrently, or those of hurricanes at that very moment afar -- were a force of Nature that, within just a few minutes time decided that about 30 years of privacy were enough...as our privacy fence was rudely uprooted, blown to the ground, almost flat as a pancake, at least as flat as the double sided pallets assembled so as to withstand wind, would lay flat on the ground, just inside our back yard, now facing eastward (perhaps just slightly nor'easter)...talk about a sudden exposure!

Post-torrent, Torment: As in "Hey Neighbor!" A torrent of 'neighborly' quotes, comments that I was met with when I first contemplated whether this fence, which was still in cosmetically decent shape but otherwise showing its age in its roots (sound familiar, exposed?), as the bottoms of the posts being decayed by the force of water, soil (earth), and...no longer being able to stand up against such a force...I then began dismantling board by board, nail by nail, post to post...all the while being bombarded by a torrent of (unsolicited!) comments, the accumulation within just a few hours' time eclipsing those I had heard throughout almost 30 years being veiled by this 'man-made' boundary..."Hey, why don't you just use the gate?!...Need a hand, my next door neighbor is real handy...That sucks, bummer!...Hey, you have a nice back yard, I've never seen it before...Now you're gonna' have to wear clothes while grilling, eh?...Well, you don't have a dog anymore do ya'?..." These represent only a small sample that I heard that very day and have been exposed to in the week since, some exemplary of sincere well wishes and offers to be helpful, lend a hand when my own looked insufficient to a passerby in my attempt to stand the pallet up, and others a slightly veiled torment, a tease for hiding all these years, for not being...well, neighborly...

Behind the Scenes, the Unseen: Even during but immediately following a force of nature we start seeing first responders, some of which remain on the scene until all are accounted for, from survivors to loved ones lost, ranging from government sponsored (e.g., FEMA) to NGO's, to those who operate behind the scene, the unseen, unheralded, those we never hear from or of, unless a passerby catches a glimpse and posts it, which might then become national news, a good news story at the end of a newscast, which began with the coverage of calamity...both of which remind US what can divide as well as unite...

Contemplate, the gate: Which was about the only part left standing, ironically (?), the focus of the smart aleck comment, and a symbol, of course, of comings and goings, as well as whether, when left wide open, neighbors might feel welcome to enter, whereas when locked, bolted...we are left to contemplate what, if anything, we should supplement this with in the spring...whether another such fence (highly unlikely, given the neighborly advice we have received) or attractive, nature-al boundaries such as waist high arborvitaes (allowing for conversation and just a bit or privacy, not an unneighborly combo?) or, perhaps, a continued westerly exposure...Hey Neighbor! Posted.