Creature Comforts vs Creator Comforts

One week ago, we were making certain we had plenty of food and water to last a few days; that our battery-powered fan batteries were charged; the dogs had all of their food and water; we had their tags; and Bindi the cat had a fresh litter box and plenty of food and water.

We fell asleep and woke up from Wednesday night’s slumber Thursday morning with the knowledge a different kind of storm would be rolling through. Hurricane Helene was headed towards Florida with nothing but warm water to fuel her on the way. Helene hit a Cat 4, but what’s 140 mph vs. 155 mph when that kind of power is hitting where human life exists?

We live in Savannah, Georgia; we knew we’d get rain and wind from the outer bands. With both, we always prepare. As we fell asleep Thursday night, we knew waking up there was a bigger chance than not that our creature comforts would be gone.

1:27 am was the time our cameras recorded going off, and it wasn’t too long after that I woke Jay Wade up because it was hot and stuffy in our room. Being 51 years old, hot flashes are the norm, and we have a window air conditioner to combat the wave of heat that washes over me. Only this wasn’t a hot flash, and there was no longer air conditioning to prevent the sudden rise of hormonal influx.

As we lay in bed with the now battery-powered fan blowing in the pitch dark, we could hear the wind whipping and the branches cracking. We heard the most guttural moan twice. Playing almost a game trying to guess what that unique sound was. We later figured out it was the root ball being ripped from the ground of a small tree in the backyard.

Fortunately, last year we had the three huge pine trees removed. There’s no doubt in either of our minds that they would’ve uprooted too. A large limb straddles a branch on the big oak tree in the front yard; had it landed, it would be lying on our vehicle. The large branch from the pecan tree in the backyard lies parallel to our fence. Walking around the yard, we realized how fortunate we truly were.

We spent the weekend without our creature comforts; we sang and laughed and told stories. Our son, Matthew, and his dad, my best friend since we were 12 years old, hung out. Sunday our son's power came back on, and we spent a creature-comfort-filled night at his house. By Tuesday we had our creature comforts restored; even the internet came on!

We had fresh water and could cook the whole time, as we have a gas-powered hot water heater and gas stove. This hurricane, Savannah never had to issue a boil water alert! Again, creature comforts.

After turning on the news, I realized 297 miles away in Asheville, NC, they were not so fortunate. Parts of the interstate washed away, and the entire downtown area is under water. Even the beautiful Biltmore had been affected.

My mind raced to my aunt, uncle, and cousins. I called my dad, who said he hadn’t heard from his sister. So eventually I texted my cousin in CA. I was relieved to know he had received one text, saying they were okay. Yesterday I received a brief text as well.

My aunt is an incredible person, a survivalist, I suppose. She could probably live decades in her woods foraging the right amount of plants and bugs to sustain herself. Creator comforts. I often wonder what life would be like had we hung out more than just the handful of times.

Do I romanticize her? Probably. I remember our drive from my hometown of Jackson to my dad’s house in Knoxville, TN, when I was a young teenager. She was wearing her running shorts and shoes; I’d never met a woman who was a runner before. If someone was running on my mom’s side of the family, there was something chasing them. In high school I started running; perhaps deep in my psyche I was emulating her.

As I sit writing this, surrounded by my creature comforts, I’m aware there are many, including my precious aunt, who are surrounded by Creator comforts rather than their creature comforts.

I spent the days without my creature comforts, trying to always keep my mind on the positives of the creature comforts surrounding me. How cool and fresh the breeze is after a storm of that magnitude! How fun it was to have my adult child here. How much fun the dogs were having romping around in the wet backyard. The coolness of the battery fan as we slept was one of my only creature comforts. And those amazing cold showers! I would take a hot shower and towards the end turn the hot water off and enjoy the cold. That’s now a ritual for me, as it’s incredible to feel.

This experience has me even more motivated to focus better on my creator comforts, perhaps adding to the edible plants we grow. Last year I planted turmeric and ginger. We just bought 2 dragon fruit plants a few weeks ago. We have our few herbs planted on the back deck. Turning our backyard into an edible oasis is now my heart's desire!

Covid took me away from my automotive career and had us downsize. This storm has us further evaluating how we want to live the rest of our lives. Being sustainable matters more than the materialistic environment we surround ourselves with. Those materialistic things can be gone in the blink of an eye. Creature comforts disappeared in a matter of a second. We were left surrounded by creator comforts.

Our cameras are back up; erased is the time they went out. My air conditioning is cooling my body, and there’s a load of laundry washing. I have my morning joe on my TV and in my hand. The water is flowing in my fish tanks, and I’m writing this on my laptop connected to the Internet. Creature Comforts.

As I end my writings here. I leave with one thought in my mind: What can I do to bring more creator comforts into my life? Creator comforts such as the edible plants I dream of growing, the walk in the sunshine I’m about to embark on, and the clean water that quenches my thirst are all gifts.

Creature comforts are wonderful to experience, but the creator comforts are what truly sustain us.

The older I get, the more convinced I become that while creature comforts make life easier, it's the creator comforts that make life meaningful. Perhaps that's the real lesson hidden inside Creature Comforts vs Creator Comforts.

Stay grounded, stay growing, and keep a little side-eye for the nonsense...

— Cat V

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