Weathering the Storm

Oh what a week it has been for me. I was only able to get in one 3 mile run this week. Let me explain why…

David left for a week on Tuesday morning. He has not had to travel in some time, but it was just for a week so it really was not a big deal. I heard on the radio Tuesday morning that there was a severe thunderstorm warning for our area, but that the rains and wind would not arrive until later in the evening. Boy, did they ever arrive.

The clock read 11:30pm just before I closed my eyes and fell asleep. The loudest and most terrifying sound woke me up just an hour later. I heard the sound of metal being wrenched, I heard the sound of a freight train, I felt my home shaking and swaying, I felt the air pressure change and a suction that can only be explained as if a shop vac was above my house and my house was fighting to stay on the ground. I remember thinking that the roof is going to come off. I did not see any separation, but I felt the suction. You think that your house is a strong shelter that will protect you from the elements outside. That night I felt my house move and shake so violently I felt as though I was in a tent. I thought my house was going to blow away. The noise was unbearable and all I could think of was that I had to get to my girls.

I really was not sure what was happening or what had happened. I know that the word tornado came into my head. I ran into Grace Anne’s room and up to this point, I did not hear her screaming. She must have been screaming the whole time, but the sound of what I now know was a “weak” tornado drowned her out completely. She was sitting in her bed with the blankets pulled up to her face screaming for me to help her. I felt guilty that I had not been able to get to her sooner. I have no idea how much time had elapsed. I grabbed her and she was yelling at me to look at her ceiling. I looked up and in the corner of her room over her dresser was a large plank of wood stuck in her ceiling. We quickly ran to Rebecca’s room and she was safe in her crib. We raced downstairs to the basement.

We stayed down there for about 10 mins, but I think that by the time we were heading down there everything was all over. I looked out the windows on either side of my front door and I could see that all of the railings and column supports for my front porch were all over my front yard. I knew then that this could not have been just strong winds.

I decided to check to see if we had phone service. I was not sure if I should call my parents because I did not want them to be startled awake. Finally, I decided to call because I was not sure how extensive the damage was and if I would eventually lose phone service. While I was on the phone with my parents, my next-door neighbor arrived at my door. She told me that the huge gazebo that was behind her home was gone and that she thought a tornado hit us. The houses across the street were untouched, but her house and her next-door neighbor also had some roof damage. In the morning, I was able to see a few other homes that had some roof damage, but our house was certainly the worst hit.

I was able to get Rebecca and Grace Anne back to sleep that night, but I was not as fortunate. I have been replaying that night in my head ever since it happened. It was just a moment in time, but there was a moment that I really thought the house was going to lose the fight against the winds. We sat and prayed together that night after it was all over. Grace Anne said, “Remember Mama, God is always with us. Even when we are scared He is with us.” She is so very right.
Wednesday I was able to better digest just what happened and see the extent of the damage to the outside of the house. We were very fortunate considering what a tornado can do to a home and to people. I think it has been the hardest on Grace Anne because she witnessed the wood coming through her ceiling. The plank of wood left a huge hole in her ceiling and the adjacent wall that “stopped” the wood. Just today, I found a hole in her bathroom closet, which shares the wall to her room. The force with which the wood came into her room is terrifying. I thank God that it was not near her.

David will be home Monday or Tuesday. I made the decision not to tell him about what happened until he returns home. We are all safe and if he came home, he would be doing the same things I am doing to try to get the repairs started. I will not feel like I have closure on it all though until I can share it with him.

I did get one run completed this week. I ran Wednesday afternoon and it was truly the best thing for me. I have not been able to get one in since, but I am thankful to have been able to run the day after all of this happened to us. I kept thinking how grateful I was that I was out running. Running brought a sense of normalcy and comfort back to a time where everything was completely abnormal and filled with fear. I turned to running to help me feel better, clear my mind, move forward. All experiences teach us something and it is our obligation to learn the lessons that are taught. I am definitely learning from my experiences nd I am thankful for each and every moment.


If you would like to see pictures please follow the following links. My house is the green house.

http://cfc.wjla.com/videoondemand.cfm?id=10172
(short spot on ABC news---picture of house) the reporter states the only damage was siding being blown off, but they only took pictures from the air. They had no idea what else happened.)

http://www.thebaynet.com/news/index.cfm/fa/viewstory/story_ID/7947 (pictures on a local online paper)


Quote for Week 10: “There are two big forces at work, external and internal. We have very little control over external forces such as tornadoes, earthquakes, floods, disasters, illness and pain. What really matters is the internal force. How do I respond to those disasters? Over that I have complete control.”
Leo F. Buscaglia