My friend and former colleague, Amber McCracken, and her husband, Brian,with their two children are in the middle of the devastation caused by Hurricane Florence in New Bern, NC, where they live.
While their home was not flooded, unlike many in their close-knit community -- as the water just made it to their front porch and then stopped -- they were without power and faced the challenges that the deadly storm has brought to many in both North Carolina and South Carolina.
In the midst of all of this, the McCrackens celebrated their 18th wedding anniversary. Amber has given me permission to reprint here the story of her Hurricane Florence Anniversary:
So today is my 18th wedding anniversary 🎉. It’s been different than any other. Here’s how my day went down...
I woke up super early to sneak out of the house to wait in line at one of the only open gas stations so we could supply our generator since we still don’t have power. I surprised my husband with multiple full gas cans.
Last night, he surprised me by rigging the generator to connect to our Rinniai so I could take a hot shower. I cleaned the yard with the kids while Brian helped clients/friends secure their homes. (Editor's note: Brian is a home remodeling specialist -- a handy guy to know).
Brian braved one of the only grocery stores open to bring me flowers 💐 and a card, then went back out to help others tarp their houses.
I showered, put on the earrings Brian gave me for Christmas and the dress he gave me for Mother’s Day (I even put on make up for the first time in a week 🙌🏻).
I cooked dinner in the dark on our gas stove and the kids helped me set a beautiful table. Once Brian got home, he and I sat down for dinner with our two favorite humans on the planet, who are only here because we said “I do” 18 years ago today.
Sometimes it takes stripping away all the big stuff to remind you that it’s the little things we do for each other everyday that makes the real difference. One of my favorite anniversaries ever ❤️.
Amber, thanks for allowing me to share this with my Not Fake News readers, who I know will appreciate the resilience of you and Brian and would like to share with me best wishes for many, many happy years to come -- hopefully, without another hurricane experience.
(By the way, I loved working with you on that special magazine!)