Short Essay Idea

When I think of a scene that I could condense into a short essay, one thought comes to mind. Exactly a year ago today, Hurricane Sandy took place, taking a major toll on individuals lives and their families; including my own. Although I was fortunate enough to still have my primary home in mint condition, something was taken away from me that I will never get back. I have previously written about my Great Grandmother, and how special she truly was to me. My entire life my family has been devoted members to Ortley Beach, a small town down at the Jersey Shore. The house may have been a total of four rooms, with one bathroom and an outdoor shower, but those rooms meant everything to my family and myself. My Great Grandmother owned the house, so when she passed away the house was passed down to her three daughters. Since my mother's mother passed away when she was only eighteen, my mother became an owner of our shore house. My mom's side is Italian and large, fitting over thirteen people in that house every weekend in the summer was standard. This house brought us together as a family; one would never know that my third cousin wasn't actually my sister, and my Aunt was actually my second cousin. This was what made us a family.

The day after Sandy hit, my mother informed my sister and I that our innocent little beach house had four feet of water in it, left with nothing but an empty house being held up by pillars. I was not sure what she meant. Was the house going to be fixed? How are three owners going to agree? What was going to happen to my family? I realized at that moment the reason behind Gram telling us to sell the shore house as soon as she passed away.  She knew that once she died, things would never be the same. Hurricane Sandy may not have stripped my family of our living conditions, but she sure took away something that we will never have again. Ever since last year, a piece is missing to my families puzzle; that piece being my shore house.