Wow! This was quite the storm and another reminder (they seem to coming more and more frequently) of how little power we have against Mother Nature. New York looked like New Orleans in 2005 and the damage caused along the Jersey Shore and all throughout the tri-state area is unbelievable. If we didn’t just live through this storm, it could have easily been confused with photos taken from a special effects edit bay on the set of War of the Worlds or The Day the Earth Stood Still.

But it’s very real and it left millions without power and brought the most densely populated area of the country to a stand-still. The horror stories being reported are terrible, with people losing literally everything. I feel for everyone affected and I’m extremely grateful not to have suffered any injuries or major damage. It will take time to rebuild everything that was destroyed during Sandy’s 24-hour rampage, but as we’ve seen before, we will move forward. People and communities from all over will join together and offer assistance. Eventually the entire northeast will re-establish a sense of normalcy.

For all of the sadness and loss that has been brought about by Sandy, there are an equal number of heroic stories. My favorite involves hospital workers wheeling a woman in labor, in the dark, to another hospital after their generator failed. Minutes after arriving at the other hospital, she delivered her healthy baby. That’s one of millions of stories which showcase the true heroism and selflessness that such treacherous situations require. Emergency responders have been working non-stop for the past 2 days and some haven’t even been to their own homes yet. Without these people, who knows how much worse the damage could have been.

Although this is such a difficult time for so many, I am always enthralled by the stories of everyone (from firefighters to policemen and women to EMT to volunteers to bystanders) working together to help those in need. It’s a great reminder of what we are capable of and that regardless of any differences, we are all in it together.