Inside the Storm

Ana Zaldarriaga
Ana Zaldarriaga

Hurricane Joaquin and New York take center stage in Ana's latest blog

There’s a buzz everywhere right now about Joaquin. That’s Hurricane Joaquin to be clear.  And as this will be the third post I write about hurricanes in general, either I am becoming uninspired or the buzz is just too loud to ignore.

I had a family event planned for this Sunday and the guests have been starting to worry about the weather, and have even changed their plans for fear of the storm. And while I too am now cautious of flood areas, emergency supplies, and proper planning, I feel the storm that we are really in the midst of is fear.

Yesterday, my parents received notices under their doors, and the suspense from the news has been looming and mounting just as thick as the dark clouds themselves, making this the main topic of conversations. It makes me wonder where we can find the balance between learning from a disaster and being overwhelmed by precaution.

As I sit at home listening to a car alarm that has been blaring since this morning, I feel even more bombarded by threats of imminent danger. And yet I have spent all day writing, creating and dialogueing with my colleagues and friends. I find myself watching my daughter who is home as well because she can’t play in the park, fighting the chaos of outdoor sounds and the threat of boredom indoors by creating a storm of her own – of pillow piles, pudding, stickers and bubbles, and anything else she can find.

She reminds me of how we are at the center of our own storm and that while we can not control the external, we can always direct the internal meteorology of our minds.

Share with me how you deal with the storms in your life!  Write your thoughts in the box below!

To learn more about hurricanes and cats and dogs, check out these TED-Ed videos http://ed.ted.com/on/T8DamtGs and http://ed.ted.com/on/yA7YHMlw

If you want to brave the storm this weekend, bust through the doors of these NY institutions:

http://www.bronxmuseum.org/events/first-fridays-all-the-ladies-say-underground-hip-hop-anniversary

http://www.ohny.org/weekend/plan-your-weekend/list-view

https://www.brooklynmuseum.org/calendar/view/2015/10/03

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Ana Zaldarriaga

By Ana Zaldarriaga

Ana Zaldarriaga Pronouns: she/her/hers Sr. Dir. of Employee Development The Leadership Program 535 8th Avenue, Floor 16 New York City, NY 10018 Phone: 212.625.8001 Fax: 212.625.8020 tlpnyc.com “…building strong leaders in classrooms and communities."