Prepared
All last week, it felt like we were living by the forecast.
Talking heads, full of dire warnings.
Screens filled with maps and models.
Percentages. Timelines. Cones of uncertainty.
Generators tested.
Groceries stacked.
Flashlights waiting by the door.
Hoping we’re ready
when the lines stiffen with ice
and the lights go dark.
But the storms that shape us most
rarely announce themselves.
They arrive in silence.
As a sentence that changes everything.
As a phone call that stills the room.
As a weight we did not see coming
until we are already carrying it.
Preparing for weather is practical.
Preparing for life is slower.
It is not built in a last-minute rush.
It is formed with consistent motion, over time.
In the choices we repeat.
In the habits we keep when no one is watching.
In the way we respond
when things do not go our way.
Character is what stands
when comfort steps away.
Faith is what holds
when control slips through our hands.
Love is what remains
when fear offers an easier path.
Preparation has less to do with my response after the event.
It has everything to do with my position
before the storm arrives.
So today, I am asking a simpler question.
Not what is on the shelf.
Not what I can gather at the last minute.
But what is already rooted in me.
The forecast will change.
It always does.
But a prepared heart
does not depend on the weather.
So I ask myself:
what am I readying now
before the next storm arrives?
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