Washing of the Water

"Goodnight, Irene." - Michael "Bugsy" Moran to new love interest Irene Johnson, before setting sail on an ill-fated fishing trip in "The Perfect Storm" (2000).

Like so many on the East Coast, my wife and I hunkered down this past weekend, praying that Hurricane Irene spared everyone and watching the frequent updates on television.

Just a week before, my wife was down in Spring Lake with her best friend, riding bikes along the boardwalk; a boardwalk, we would learn, that was largely ripped apart or washed away by Irene.  Hurricanes will do that - wash away things.  And not only physical things.

The first hurricane I remember was Agnes, a similarly powerful Category 1 hurricane that plowed up the Eastern seaboard just after school ended in June 1972.  I don't remember much, but I do recall us having significant flooding.  And the lone casualty for me - a small child - was some Matchbox cars (an ambulance was one of them) that got washed away in some floodwaters.

In September 1985, reports predicted a mammoth hit from Hurricane Gloria, while away at college in north Jersey.  We taped our dorm windows and bunked together and, once again, hoped for the best.  But there was no one there to protect us from harm's way.  We weren't home.  No family.  No parents.  Just each other.  So despite the doom and gloom, we made the best of it.  There was a youthful camaraderie to the proceedings - yes, some drinking was involved and more than a few horrible renditions of the Laura Branigan hit "Gloria" were sung.  But, in the end, when Gloria spared us with a last-minute turn, the only things washed away were our innocence - we were growing up! <gasp> - and our faith in the weather experts to predict anything.

Hurricane Floyd, in September 1999, caused all sorts of massive flooding, particularly to Bound Brook.  But my heart had been washed away a week earlier when my mother passed away, quite unexpectedly.  Everything after that, rising tides and blowing winds, was just a blur anyway.

Which brings us to Irene.  It wasn't as bad as we had feared.  We, as well as most of our friends and family, came out of it unscathed.  But with time, so much has changed.  We're homeowners now.  And while your first thought is for personal safety, you can't help worrying about things like the roof, or the basement, or the neighbor's giant holly tree.  Nothing got washed away - just a few hours sleep.  But as my sister said to me before Irene moved through, "We're getting too old for this."

Goodnight, Irene.  And may your sisters and brothers stay away for quite some time.