Business as usual is a phrase that typically means “everything is normal.” Except that, sometimes, it is not. And sometimes, it is normal in one place, not another. Because our work happens in the trial venue, we have to adapt to what is happening there. It might be normal there, and not here. An example, way back in 1992, was when Hurricane Andrew blasted south Florida. The trial consulting company for which Melissa and I were working was in North Miami, and while the building weathered the storm fine, the power was out, for many days. This was before the world of portable computers and “the cloud” but we had a couple of computers that could be relocated. We moved them to our house, which had power, and many people came to our house to work because we were on deadlines for clients who were not impacted by the storm damage. As I write this post, Hurricane Ian has just ripped up Southwest Florida, including Melissa’s hometown of Fort Myers. The damage there is tremendous and details are only trickling out because the assessments of the impact will take weeks and, as of now, communications systems are down. The images are surreal because we know the places shown in the photos and videos. They have been forever changed. The impact on lives and property will be tremendous. Yet, here in Southeast Florida today, it is sunny and hot and things are almost normal to the point that Melissa is heading back to the Miami courthouse for a trial tomorrow. The trial started Tuesday as Ian approached and the courts closed for 2 days, but life is quickly getting back to normal. We knew with Hurricane Andrew and other storms that we had to operate as closely to normal as possible because clients in unaffected areas were going about their normal routines and schedules. This time it is us with the mostly normal routines while our friends and family deal with their altered reality. It is painful to consider what they are going through, especially having gone through it in varying degrees ourselves. But it is especially surreal that life can be “normal” and so “abnormal” at the same time!
Although I have not lived full time in Fort Myers since soon after my high school graduation in 1976, it will always be “home” to me. My family came to Fort Myers from Wakulla County, Florida in the 1920s, almost 100 years ago. The images of many local landmarks and some of my favorite places in the world depict horrendous, unimaginable damage and the devastation some of my close friends have suffered will impact them for the rest of their lives. But, just as I vividly recall leaving the Miami airport soon after Hurricane Andrew in 1992, walking past blown out windows that were covered with plastic to board my flight to a faraway destination that was not affected by the hurricane, life in my current home of Southeast Florida has gone on after Hurricane Ian destroyed Fort Myers and its surrounding areas. On Friday, September 30, the Miami-Dade Courthouse was as busy as could be, with judges, lawyers, jurors, and court personnel going about business as usual. No one mentioned the fact that, mere hours before this, on Wednesday, September 28, a Category 4 hurricane touched down 150 miles away. Everyone, including me, just conducted themselves as if nothing had happened. Jury selection is the most stressful part of my job. It requires concentration, considerable assertiveness in managing multiple attorneys, and more important, absolute perfection on my part. (I always inform people that no one ever hires me to make a mistake!)In addition, September 30, 2022 marked a tragic anniversary in my life; it was the 50th anniversary of my dear father’s untimely passing. He worked in the Lee County Courthouse, a place which brings back fond memories for me, and it was serendipitous that, of all places I could be, I was doing my job in one of my favorite places, a courthouse, after seeing much of my childhood erased by a hurricane.
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