The Winds of Change
Recovering from Hurricane Helene
This month I’d planned to roll out the new direction for this website and my career, but hurricane Helene upended those plans. She wreaked havoc throughout the mountains of western North Carolina, devouring entire communities. More than 400 power poles were snapped and 6,800 miles of line damaged in my area alone, requiring linemen to rebuild the electrical grids from the ground up in many cases. As if this task wasn’t already difficult in these rugged mountains, many bridges and roads were completely destroyed, preventing people from obtaining the resources needed to survive while making things exponentially more difficult for the linemen to restore power.
It’s much worse southwest of us, with towns like Chimney Rock essentially deleted while Asheville digs out after being submerged beneath twenty-five feet of muddy water. Recovery will take months in my area. But for our neighbors, while they may build back, I doubt they’ll ever fully recover. Life there is forever changed.
Everyone in my immediate family is safe with zero property damage. Cassandra and I were without power or water for ten days, while several family members remain in the dark as of this writing (15 days and counting).
And yet, the people of Appalachia are tougher than the thorny locust trees that call these dark forests home, and are as resilient as the ancient mountains themselves.
Giving up isn’t an option. We will continue the fight.
I’m grateful that I was able to take time this year to reconsider my course in life, examine what works and what doesn’t, and learn how to live a overall better life. That’s not been very exciting for those on the outside looking in, and it’s not been easy for me to accept certain truths. But it’s been necessary so that I can better take care of myself, my wife, and our future.
I found the path that leads to the brightest future for us thanks to a series of fortuitous events. I’ve decided to pursue sculpting and character design full time, in an area of expertise in which I’ve unknowingly trained for my whole life. (Consider the new name of this website a not so subtle hint…)
However, out of respect of those still suffering in the aftermath of Helene and to give myself some time to settle into new routines, I will wait on sharing more details of what that path looks like. Now isn’t the time, but soon. I just wanted you to know that we are alive and thriving.
Brighter days ahead for all.
-Victor Ellison