Mark Edward Brown's Blog

Last week I experienced my first typhoon.  Many of you know I am currently stationed in Korea and it is monsoon season however when strong winds and rains come ripping across the peninsula it’s called a “Typhoon”.  The typhoon that carved it’s way across Korea last week was named “Kompasu” and it left more than uprooted trees and power outages in my memory.

We prepared as best as we could for this tropical storm.  We made sure that enough rations and water was on hand to feed my small group of “Guardians” (that’s what I call my troops because most of them are prison guards).  The storm was forcasted to come through in the early morning to mid-day of the 2nd of September 2010 and it did exactly that.

As I slept I remember hearing the sound of the wind whistling through the screens of my windows as well as the ventilation ducts of the internal venting where the outside meets the inside of the building.  It was not enough to cause concern and there were no alarms, sirens, or public anouncements warning of impending danger so I slept quite soundly in spite of the fact that a damaging tropical storm was raging right outside my apartment.

When I awoke I stayed inside, it was still rainy and a bit windy plus I recieved a call that only mission essential personnel were to report to work that day.  I was told by my boss the evening before the storm not to go to work unless directed otherwise and I relayed that to all of my people as well except for those brave souls who were scheduled for duty; they had to work because as I mentioned above they are correctional facility guards.

Not long after I awoke I recieved the message that my grandmother had died in the early hours of the morning – the same time Kompasu was tearing it’s way across Korea.  I felt extreme loss, sadness and despair that day because I could not be with my family or at my Dad’s side because it was his mother that had passed on.  I was thankful that I did not have to work and I could deal with this time of loss on my own. 

I have since spoken with many of my family and loved one’s, especially my Dad and expressed to them all how much I regretted not being able to be with them during this time of loss.  My Grandma’s wake and funeral concluded yesterday in the middle of rural South Dakota.  My wife and children made the trip to be with our family and pass along my condolences and to pay the proper respect to such a wonderful woman whose name was “Margaret Brown” (she was 86) and I will miss her!