The pictures look mangled. Well, they are mangled, at least the buildings are. Okay, so are the boats, and yes, there is also a mangled airplane.

I remember an essay about survival of the fittest. It referenced a scientific study, constructed somewhere in Minnesota. What survives?

What survives is not some eloquent species, particularly suited to a harsh element, drought or temperature. What survives is diverse adaptability.

The study focused on some ragtag patch of soil and plants that made it through a variety of conditions that killed off everything else. The surviving flora was distinct only through its diversity and its adaptability.

Power poles don’t adapt much.

“That which does not bend, shall be bent out of shape.”

Hurricane Wilma reminds us what it will take, not just to recover, to survive, but to take hold and thrive again. It will not be some super strength, but our diversity and our adaptability. -TF