Sunday, June 8, 2008

Tornado

We had major thunderstorms last Wednesday. Multiple funnel clouds formed. There was a discrepancy among weather reporters about whether they actually formed into tornadoes, or not. Power went out a few times, hail the size of pennies, wind stronger than I've experienced, nervous children, Derrell gone. Needless to say, it was a memorable few hours!

We don't have a basement, so we were in our hall and bathroom during the worst of it. The next morning there was debris everywhere: a few trees have missing branches, and a telephone pole split.

Interestingly, even though there was a tornado warning for hours before it turned to a tornado watch (meaning one has formed and been sighted), the weather was calm and mild and sunny. Then the worst weather I've ever experienced, then calm and mild and sunny again. This is the third tornado in a month's time in our area. Last time it was in the city 15 miles north of us. One side of one street was especially affected. Houses were torn to pieces--one family in our stake has never found their couch. So, these twisters aren't huge, but still destructive.

One of the worst places to be during a tornado is in a car. Derrell was supposed to be home any minute, and I found myself pleading with the Lord for his safety. (The closest cell phone tower went down, so I couldn't get a signal for a couple hours. Consequently, I didn't know how or where he was.) He called sometime later and reported that he was still in DC. I am certain that the "inconvenience" of his activities lasting longer than expected was actually "protection" because it kept him away from the storm. I am grateful he is safe! I am grateful for prayer.