When we moved to the Caribbean last year, I knew experiencing a hurricane was possible. I remember conversing with my husband about what we would do in case of an impending storm, and he replied we’d take things as they come.
We made it through our first hurricane season without any major storms. I guess the universe wanted to ensure we didn’t take the possibility of a hurricane for granted, so Beryl visited us. Neither of us had experienced a hurricane before, so we didn’t know what to expect.
My go-to for weather updates is Mr. Weatherman, a YouTube channel where Brian Shields provides forecasts for the Caribbean and Central America. I watched him religiously and am grateful for his weather forecasts. He was definitely on point with Beryl. He was even right about the time the storm would come.
It took two months for the power to be restored to our town. Living without power for that amount of time is very humbling. An electric pump supplies the water at the house, so we got water in “old-school” ways, filling buckets from the water tank and using bottled water to clean ourselves.
Thankfully, the entire island wasn’t affected, so we could go to Airbnb and get some laundry done and enjoy some running water and air conditioning. 🎉
Home internet is still out, and mobile signals are spotty. Last week, Hurricane Helene passed close by, bringing a lot of rain and some more power outages.
If we’ve learned anything from this experience, it’s that the more prepared we are, the better. Thankfully, our friends in Kingston loaned us their generator so we could plug in our fridge to keep our food and power our fans.
Two months without power made me feel like I was camping without a tent (thankfully). The experience gave me an appreciation of my upbringing. My parents taught me to “make do” with what I have instead of complaining about what I don’t have. Two months without power and struggling to get online have been easier because we’ve found a way to “make do” with what we have.
A few people thought we’d pack up and go back to Canada after the storm. We knew what we were getting into moving to the Caribbean. I think that the storms are the price we pay for living in a tropical climate where we can pick fresh fruits and vegetables straight from the source.
Despite all the internet troubles, I still managed to finish my book and submit it for the Amazon.co.uk competition, which had a deadline of August 31. The Kindle version is live, and I’m awaiting approval for the paperback. I’ll keep you posted once it goes live. 😊