Resilience After Tragedy

Today in the grocery store I ran into a friend of mine I hadn't seen in a while.  My friend is a widow, 80, and she shared her aches and pains and the state of her back and knees.

 As with a lot of the conversations folks around where I live are having, the talk turned to the recent Hurricane and all the flooding.  She shared how she had no idea so many people in our area were affected.  Then she shared with me that she has been busy lately helping the first responders who had been helping in the county.  She and 3 friends made 400 sandwiches one day to take to the first responders.  The first responders hadn't eaten in 2 days. I was so impressed!  This woman is 80, has constant pain in her back and knees!  She put aside her issues to help others. And she and her friends made more sandwiches just a couple of days later. She just wanted to help and show her appreciation.  I was so inspired.
I've read and heard story after story like this.  Extraordinary stories of people helping out after hurricanes. The Cajun Navy and others coming from Louisiana, bringing their boats and jacked up trucks to get through the stress, rescuing people.  Neighbors opening their homes to neighbors who were flooded out.  Hundreds of thousands of pairs of underwear delivered to the the main staging area for evacuees.  So many churches distributing supplies, food, water and clothing to those who lost everything.  During the recent shooting, everyday folks threw themselves over others to shield their bodies, taking bullets themselves.  Volunteers bringing therapy dogs to the hospitals to bring comfort and healing to the gunshot victims.  Normal, everyday people with no particular training or extra special talents, going above and beyond to help others out.
The news has been full of gloom and tragedy.  And then there are the stories of all people working on behalf of others behind the scenes.  The story that I keep coming back to is the resilience we as a collective have in time of distress and tragedies.  I still believe in our human spirit and our capacity to share love with each other.