Always be prepared

When there is an emergency it is important to have a few things in order. You should know where your passport or ID card is, have some spare cash on hand, and know important phone numbers and addresses by heart. These safety tips have been instilled in me since I was young from my Dad. He has always been known as Mr.Safety in my family. He has some emergency cash on him at all times, always locks the door (even to take out the trash), and has extra batteries and flashlights available at all times in the house. We used to make fun of his "always be prepared" mindset as emergencies rarely came up, but there was so much comfort in having him around. He has this mindset partly due to my grandmother who raised him with this value on safety, but also he grew up in New York. This is enough to make anyone a little paranoid by nature. If he got into an accident he always had a disposable camera in his glove compartment so he could capture any damage that happened (this was before the cellphone camera days). He always told me to do the same, but when I got my license I thought it was a silly worry he had so I didn't keep one as he had warned. So when I got into a car accident outside of my high school when I was 15, he showed up at the scene prepared as always, and all I could offer was tears. As myself and my sister have grown older he has become more relaxed with certain safety issues, but he always has great advice for ways to be prepared. After all, I carried mase in my purse back in the States on a regular basis due to his advice. It's not been used yet, but comforting to have, nonetheless.

My Mom is quite the opposite. She has always been incredibly relaxed; always being so positive that the thought of something negative happening never enters her mind. Both she and I would laugh at the precautions that my Dad would take, but when there was an emergency we would always say, "Thank God for Daddy."

When Hurricane Fran hit North Carolina I could truly see how different my parents were. I was quite young at the time and very nervous and scared about the hurricane's possible effects, as was my sister. But my Mom was very relaxed thinking that the storm would not be bad at all. (She was so blissfully positive in nature, and incredibly reassuring so we would not be worried come our bedtimes.) Because of this she took no precautions as to changing my sleeping arrangements as my bed was directly under a window. I laid in bed that night peeking out the curtains as trees and power lines came flying down all over my neighborhood. With my eyes wide open and my hands clutching my teddy bear tightly, I watched in terror wondering if I should sleep somewhere else. (my Mom still feels terrible about this!) When we woke up the next morning without power, my Dad jumped into action. He went into full on Mr.Safety mode pulling out all the things he had stored up in case of an emergency. He first drove around the neighborhood to check out the damage. Then he made sure we had enough to eat and drink, and then put batteries in the numerous flashlights we owned with many spare sets available for whenever they died. He made sure we stayed inside our home with the doors locked as 'you never know if robbers or other dishonest people may try to take advantage of a blackout situation and try to break into the neighborhoods with no electricity.' He was always preparing for the worst and my Mom thought the worst would never happen. They actually balance each other out very well, which is probably part of why they have been married for so long! :)

I would like to think that I'm a mix of both of them on the matter of safety and being prepared. I always let myself  think about the worst scenarios so I can prepare for them but then I choose to dwell on the fact that they will never happen.

So in case North Korea loses their mind and a bomb drops over Seoul, my Dad now has all of my important information. The usual of course, like passport info and such, but confirming this with him still made me feel better in case an emergency should arise here in Seoul. But like I said, I am choosing to think he will never need them!

It's very surreal to 'prepare' for this kind of emergency, because if something really does happen here I'm not sure what good it will do. Most likely all forms of communication will be cut off and I won't be able to tell my family I'm alright. What good will my passport info do for them in that moment? Nada. I will be out of contact for days, if not weeks, with no way to get word back to NC about what's going on! I mean Hurricane Fran knocked out power for 10 days!!!

Maybe the lesson I'm supposed to learn is you can't always be prepared for emergencies. The inner girl scout in me and my Dad's genetic make up are screaming with refutes to this thought, but with bomb's going off all over the world there's really no way to know how to be or who needs to be prepared. And if a bomb does go off I don't exactly think a little first aide kit will do me much good! I mean, between all of us teachers in this building we probably have one small box of band aides and one tube of antiseptic cream. It's pathetic! But with people messaging you on facebook and telling you to 'be safe' you feel like you ought to be doing something.....so maybe a quick run to Daiso (our dollar store) for a better first aide kit should be on the to-do list?

I think it's time to let go, wing it, and just know I've done all I can. What will be....will be, and my family will just have to know that I'm alright if I ever can't contact them. I don't actually think anything will happen so it's probably for the best to have this kind of attitude.

Well............maybe I should invest in a pigeon or dove who can carry notes across the world for me anyway.

Gosh, how did people ever survive without technology? :)