Dangerous Beauty

    Last night about 9:45 pm My phone buzzed like crazy and made this weird noise I'd never heard before.... an alert was letting us know there had been a tornado spotted in My hometown and there was a tornado warning issued for the next hour.    

    My toddler was tucked nicely away in his bed and I'd been watching some tv with Rob, up loud enough to cover the storm.  When My phone alerted us however, I turned the tv off and began to prepare.  Having grown up in TN (tornado valley area) I knew what to expect.   Once we were ready and I knew the baby was safe I stood for a bit just watching and listening to the storm.   I must have stood there for ten minutes just taking in the magnificence of such a storm.   The clouds were rolling by so quick, as if there was a race and the prize too great not to exert every force to win.  Lightening flashed constantly through those racing clouds... lighting up the dark sky more brilliantly than any fourth of July firework display I've ever seen.   The thunder, a continuous low roll that made the floor shake and My stomach knot (there's a reason thunder is the only thing that still has the power to turn Me into a quivering little girl, scared and crying but that is a blog for another day).  I waited, waited for a break in the thunder but none came.  The sound and feel was that of a massive plane headed straight for us.  

    My phone, in hand, suddenly started to beep and I was brought back to reality.   Stepping back inside we grabbed the baby and went downstairs where we huddled for a good thirty minutes just listening to Mother Nature overhead.   The baby was a bit fussy and scared, so was I, but as a mother My first instinct is to protect.... no matter how scared I am.   So soft murmurings and little lullabies whispered in his ear helped us both ride out the rest of the danger.  

    When we knew it has passed we tucked My boy back in bed and sat out on the balcony watching the last of the storm breeze past us.  I returned the few messages of friends and family who had heard the storm and tornado was headed My way and alerted Me, bringing Me back to reality earlier in the evening.  Grateful that I had people who loved Me enough to warn and check on Me.   Then I sat back, breathed a heavy sigh of relief, and thought.

    There is such beauty in a thunder storm.... a living painting that reminds us how small and insignificant we are in the greater scheme of life. Mother Nature is a force that can't be contained.   Her beauty, though mesmerizing, is deadly if you forget that she is the one in control.


    This morning I awoke and went outside to asses the damage.  Our building stood fine, as were the other houses around us, other than a multitude of branches and debris scattered throughout the lawn.  My neighbors were out as well so I walked over to chat and see if they knew anything... sure enough there had been a tornado touch down and just a few streets over some friends houses were destroyed.  I thank the heavens no one was killed or hurt but the damage done is significant.  As these families rebuild we as a community will stand behind them and support them... it could have been any of us. It could have been Me.  So today I will do My part, I will go to help sort out what can be sorted and save what can be saved... I will be there for hugs and give My shoulder to be leaned on.... that's what community does.  That's what I do.