. These stores do on the other hand provide emergency water filtration and purification products. They also market field food prep kits and portable cooking accessories. Other items readily available at these stores include: "Shelter -- military surplus blankets, cots, sleeping bags, tents, duffels, shovels... outerwear are very practical, well-made and inexpensive components of any home disaster preparation kit. Military-style inflatable lifeboats and vests are great for flood use." Gas masks, on the other hand, are not a particular item needed for emergency disaster planning and as Hawver contends, "best promoted as Halloween items rather than as effective for use in emergency situations." In the same sense, helmets, chemical protection suits, along with body armor best fit the most paranoid. The Department of Homeland Security recommends a first aid kit contain: "two pairs of sterile gloves, sterile dressings to stop bleeding, a cleansing agent/soap and antibiotic towelettes to disinfect wounds or burns, antibiotic ointment and burn ointment to prevent infection, adhesive bandages in a variety of sizes, eye wash solution to flush the eyes or as a general decontaminant, a thermometer, any prescription medications, and prescribed medical supplies. The department also suggests scissors, tweezers, and petroleum jelly." (Bubny, Ibid.) The Red Cross would add a first aid manual -- for a customer who isn't trained in first aid, trying to figure out what to do can consume precious time -- as well as a blanket, a flashlight and extra batteries, a face mask for CPR use, a cold pack, aspirin, and gauze bandages. "Are You Ready?" is the name of the 139-page guide FEMA publishes to help individuals deal with natural disasters. Understanding the following forces of natural disasters can help a person better prepare for an ensuing emergency:

Hurricane

What it is: A hurricane is a tropical storm that reaches sustained winds of 74 miles per hour or greater.

When: The season lasts from the start of June to the end of November, but the peak months are August and September.

Where: Hurricanes often occur in the Caribbean and can hit anywhere in the U.S. from the Gulf of Mexico to the East Coast.

Tornado

What it is: A tornado is a violent windstorm with a funnel shaped cloud.

When: The season lasts from March to August.

Where: They tend to occur in the center of the country. But tornadoes can occur anywhere and at any time.

Earthquake

What it is: An earthquake is shaking of the ground and movement of the earth caused by a release of energy along the geologic faults, or by volcanic activity. Earthquakes are measured on the Richter scale, which goes from 1 to 10.

When: Earthquakes occur without warning.

Where: Earthquakes tend to occur on the West Coast, but can happen anywhere.

Wild Fire

What it is: A wild fire is an unplanned, naturally occurring fire on wild land, requiring human intervention to avoid mass spreading.

When: Late summer and early fall. The flames are further fanned by the combination of drought-like conditions and high winds.

Where: Wild fires can happen anywhere you find dry conditions. The West is prime fire territory.

Flood

What it is: A flood is the rise of large amounts of water onto dry land. Next to fires, floods are the most common natural disasters.

When: Any time.

Where: Anywhere. (Bauer, 2005)

Wipfler (2003) wrote an article on 911 and later revised the work, sharing her thoughts aobut terrorism,"and the cascade of feelings it has triggered."

As America currently regularly experiences thoughts and images of death, strife and war, Wipfler questions what do parents and those who care about youth tell the child now exposed to daily images of death and strife. How can a parent best explain war to the little one?

In the following excerpt from Wipfler's thoughts following 911, she says best what needs to be heard by hearts of adults who think they must always be read to expect the unexpected.

First, we need to set aside time to talk with each other, and work through some of our feelings and reactions, at times and places separate from our children. We adults carry a heavy load of feelings about these events. We have been made to feel helpless and hopeless about both current events and historical events over and over again....

We've had to cover our grief and outrage with resignation or indifference, because there is so little room in our society for the full expression of healthy protest. So often, the first task is to remember what and who we care most about. From there, we can remember the hopes we had as children that the world would be sweet, safe, and just. We need to let our thoughts about who we love and our longings for safety and justice lead to emotional release in crying, trembling, and an open show of upset. We need to do this with other adults. It will help us recover our ability to pay attention to the power we do have and to what we can do in our own families and communities to make the world right. We won't communicate well with our children unless we take time to express and unload our deep feelings. We should not expect our children to handle the bulk of that load.
It is important, however, for our children to see that we care about people, about justice in the world, and about bringing an end to people harming people. If you are upset, go ahead and cry openly, but without detailed explanation of your feelings. "I'm sad about something I heard on the news" is fine, along with "and I just need to cry for a little while to get the sadness out." What children don't need to hear is expressions of anger, hopelessness, or helplessness.

It is not helpful for very young children to know all the details of what has happened. They can't digest violent behavior, and can become terrified by exposure to the graphic images and the feelings of horror and drama that we attach to the details. To keep young children from becoming unnecessarily terrified, we can

Shield them from the media. TV reports, newspaper photographs, and radio commentary can communicate that adults do not feel safe, in charge, or trustful of others. Get your news after the children have gone to bed, or while you're commuting in your car. Don't let news of the war erode the sense of connection and caring that you work so hard to build in your family.

Offer an accurate perspective on "off-track" behavior. The casting of some people as good and some as bad is a construct that promotes misunderstanding and is used to market injustice in today's world. We need to let our children know that we all are good, and we all do things that are "off track" when we feel hurt or afraid. They need to know that some children are treated very badly growing up. But if someone steps in, stops the hurtful behavior, and stays close, a hurt person can change. We don't always know how to step in, and people are often not brave enough, or quick enough to catch people before they've grown up and are able to do more harm. That's what we're trying to learn. Our older children need to know that some groups are targeted for mistreatment, but if a whole group of people organizes and works for justice, with respect as a guiding principle, they can create justice without promoting violence, even when the situation doesn't look hopeful.

We need to disavow the attitude that some people are evil and deserve to die. This attitude is one that we as a race must replace so that we can live peacefully with each other, and mend the injustices that breed hopelessness and violence. We have much work to do to develop effective but nonviolent ways of preventing people from doing harm. We'll need minds dedicated to the more subtle but more accurate perception that an originally good person lies beneath a load of hurt that has created harmful behavior.

Keep concentrating on our present lives, the tasks and routines of every day, and the goodness of being together and enjoying one another.

When explanation is needed, explain the events in general terms, and in terms that your child can understand. For example, you could say that lots of adults feel upset, that some people have decided to stop a man who was hurting people by going and hurting him and his friends. You can explain that you have feelings, too, and that you will be talking to other grownups to take care of your upsets about it.

Children need regular reassurances from parents and other adults who care about hem. They need to know that despite emergencies and disaster, they will be cared for. In a sense, so do adults. All ages need to know that even if as Brewer's quote states at the beginning of this paper and an emergency occurs where people do thing they would scorn to do in easy circumstances, where there is life there is hope and when there is love, there…