Storm Chasers

The other evening after dinner I found myself alone in the house. The hubby had to work later, daughter was a rehearsal and son was outside on his bike. There was a lot I could have done, such as clean and/or straighten the house, throw in a load of laundry, write my next chapter, continue editing Pure is the Heart, read blogs or even right one. I did none of those things.

Have you ever just wanted to do nothing? I sat down and turned on the television. I started flipping channels and stopped at the Discovery Channel. I had not really seen Storm Chasers before, but I love a good storm. I always have. Maybe it is the energy. And, I am fascinated by tornadoes. Not that I would ever chase one. That is just too scary. One of my earliest memories is a tornado hitting my neighborhood. Not only did it do damage to the house, but the school down the road as well. Had it hit fifteen minutes earlier, kids would have been getting out of school and walking home. Though I was very young at the time, I remember standing at the end of the hall, my mother and grandmother were pushing on the door trying to keep it closed and my brother and sister were in the living room. Mom was screaming at them (not in a mean way but to be heard over the noise) to get away from the window and into the hall. It is a vivid memory and probably the only one I have from that age. Despite the time the storm hit and the number of houses, including the school where the teachers had gotten a number of the students into the basement, nobody was killed and there were few injuries. With that storm and tornado, timing was everything.

So, even though tornadoes fascinate me and I love a good storm, I also have a healthy dose of respect and the danger they can bring. This past summer we had a strong storm come through with one of many tornadoes this year. I watched the news and listened to the sirens. When a county is under a tornado watch or warning I don’t rush to safety (though I know I should) because our county is rather big, as most are. By knowing where exactly the storm was sighted, I’ll know how dangerous it is to me. Ten miles south of me is usually not a concern. However, one particular storm this year was different. One of the tornados sighted was headed directly for my neighborhood. When your subdivision is actually mentioned on the news as being in the path you take cover. So, I turned the television up loud so I could hear it from safety and grabbed my cellphone, frantically calling the kids. One was in the park with her boyfriend, but they heard the sirens and were headed somewhere safe to determine exactly where the danger is. Another was at a party, no television or radio, had their own music, and not a clue as to what was happening. The husband was at work. So, my son and I hunkered down and waited.

The tornado did not hit us and there was not much damage from the storm. However, the same thing cannot be said of a small town just west of us. They were hit by two tornadoes that night just minutes apart. How often does that happen? Again, thankfully nobody was killed and I am pretty sure there weren’t serious injuries. And, this is not the first time this town has been struck by a tornado. One hit the year before, if I remember correctly. And, there have been others before that. I wonder if they are on some secret tornado path none of know about.

It was not soon before I was drawn in and watching back to back episodes of Storm Chasers. A lot of it is the thrill, but it is also about the science, mainly. Two are wanting to get the best readings so they can better understand a tornado and maybe provide better warnings. The third is gathering footage for a movie. They studied the size, speed and direction and determined where they could intercept it and drove in that direction. But, a few times the tornado turned on them, and one started heading toward them. They had been so sure of what it was going to do but it did something totally different and they had to make sudden decision on what they were going to do.

But, that is life, isn’t it? How often do we know exactly what is going to happen, a path we are going to take and all of a sudden we are headed in a totally different direction and doing things we never even considered. How often do you think the path we see is the path we plan on but the path we end up on is the path God intended? Has your life ever done an about-face that left you scrambling, just like securely watching a tornado move away until it turns back on you and you are suddenly unsure of what to do or wonder how you got there?

As this is Powerful Prayful Sunday, I would like you to continue to keep my mother in your prayers along with my sister-in-law’s mother, who is not doing well. This week I would like to include my husband who will be having some tests and my sister who is ill.

How about you? How can I pray for you this week?