Living in the Land of Blue Tarps.

Is there a connection between misery and civility? When circumstances force us to depend more on each other, and less on laws and social systems, the interpersonal space between you and me is where it all happens…or not.

It’s been going on five months now since Hurricanes Irma and Maria (or ,”Irmaria”, as the two back-to-back storms are now being referred to in the islands) struck the U.S. Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico (both part of the United States). My house on St Thomas, one the three U.S. Virgin Islands, just got its power back ten days ago, and there are still parts of the island, not to mention the other islands of St John and St Croix, where power has yet to be restored. Our house does not yet have its roof back, but we’re working on that. Right now, it has joined the ranks of just about every other structure on the island, with a bright blue FEMA tarp replacing what was once a roof that simply could not withstand tornado level winds. Which was the reason for my trip there last week: to assess the progress of the restoration, the status of the island, and reclaim that little piece of my heart that St Thomas has had for many years, before it was blown away on 5 September, 2017.