Memories in the Making: Stormy Weather

Tonight is supposed to be bad weather. Strong winds, large hail, possible tornadoes :( I have never really been scared of bad weather. That was until April 27, 2011. Of course that was when the terrible tornado tore through our town destroying so many businesses, homes, and lives. It was also a time of giving, helping, and loving our neighbors. So many businesses and schools were closed for days after so my friend Crystal and I volunteered for days. It was very sad and very rewarding at the same time.

This takes me back to when I was about 9 or 10, we were at home listening to the weather because it was supposed to be an ugly night. My dad was always our "weather guy". He would keep us updated with any changes, etc. He should have been and could have been a meteorologist. He and I would sit outside and watch the winds blow and the rains pour, and we would have our cameras trying to catch the perfect lightning stike. That particular night I remember we were sitting outside on the porch and it was eerily calm. The sky had a green tint to it. We had the radio set to listen to the weather. All of a sudden we hear them shouting on the radio to take cover immediately! We had no storm shelter and no really safe place to hide. We all jumped in the car and drove as fast as we could to our neighbors storm shelter. As we were driving the wind picked up so quickly. I remember my dad trying to keep the car steady. The rain started coming down so hard we could barely see. And the lightning was striking so close to the ground. We got to Jeff's and everyone jumped out of the car and as we started running to our cover, one of us turned around and saw a strange spinning cloud in the distance. We ran in and closed the door and all huddled up together. We sat in there for what seemed like an eternity but was actually only about an hour. We heard lots of noises but was unsure of what exactly was going on outside. After a while when everything was calm, we stepped out and by the grace of God, only a few trees were down. Houses were still intact and our family was still intact. The tornado had not touched down. I can still to this day remember thinking how blessed we were.

Now everytime I hear possible tornadoes, I get a little queasy. I worry now because I have my boys to think of. I have two precious lives that I am responsible for. And they mean EVERYTHING to me!!!! I take that role very seriously!!! As I am typing this I get the text that county schools are closing at 12 due to possible bad weather. Very scary and saying a prayer that all will be ok tonight. Below are pics from the April 27th tornado that ravished our town...