This last week marked one year since Hurricane Helene roared through Western North Carolina, taking with her homes, trees, and the illusion of safety. The last year has been a lot of things for all of us. Many of our critical roads are still YEARS from being open to the public. Businesses are starting to reopen, and some never will. Lake Lure is beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel on silt and debris removal, but it is still many months away from being usable again. With all the progress and lack of progress, something happened last week that reminded me once again of the saying rough waters make good sailors. Just as we were all gearing up to celebrate the one-year milestone since Helene, another storm was brewing in the Atlantic. For about 24 hours, it looked like it was likely to come barreling through Charleston and into Western NC on a similar path to Hugo from 30 plus years ago. As to be expected, my first thought was dread, fear, all the stuff. Then something interesting happened. I thought "Well, we know how to do this." I went through my list of things that would best prepare us for what might come and realized that it's not nearly as scary to face something you've already been through. I'm not saying being prepared would take away the discomfort, the agony, the damage the storm could inflict. What I'm saying is that HOW I approach it ...