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(9:54.) Natural disasters possess the great rousing energy of powers unleashed, of nature escaping man’s discipline, and by their very characteristics also remind man of his own psyche; for in their way such profound events always involve creativity being born, rising even from the bowels of the earth, reshaping the land and the lives of men.

Individual reactions follow this innate knowledge, for while man fears the unleashed power of nature and tries to protect himself from it, he revels in it and identifies with it at the same time. (Pause.) The more “civilized” man becomes, the more his social structures and practices separate him from intimate relationship with nature — and the more natural catastrophes there will be, because underneath he senses his great need for identification with nature; he will himself conjure it into earthquakes, tornadoes, and floods, so that he can once again feel not only their energy but his own.

(Pause.) The hidden “illness” of the area was plain for everyone to see. People came from all around to help. For once comradeship ignored social structure. Taken-for-granted patterns of existence had been ripped away quite effectively in a day’s time. To one extent or another each individual involved saw himself in clear personal relationship with the nature of his life thus far, and sensed his kinship with the community. More than this, however, each human being felt the enduring energy of nature and was reminded, even in the seeming unpredictability of the flood, of the great permanent stability upon which normal life is based.

The power of the water put each individual in touch with intimate recognition of his dependence upon nature, and made him question values taken for granted too long. Such a crisis automatically forces each person to examine values, to make instant choices that will provide him with recognitions to which he had been blind earlier.

The area became a psychic and physical focus point of attention, thereby attracting other energy to it. Each individual involved had his or her own reasons for participating, and through the mass-created framework, worked out private purposes and dilemmas.

(Before I typed this material from my notes, Jane and I discussed whether we should supplement Seth’s rather generalized local data with specific names, dates, and events involving Elmira and Chemung County; this information would cover periods of at least several months before and after the flood of June 23, 1972. We decided it wasn’t necessary — Seth has already made his points sufficiently for this book.