Wornoutwoman

Since I moved here in 1990, I've been asked multiple times, 'Why do you live in Oklahoma?'  And, as the weather has become more and more extreme, here in tornado alley, my friends across the nation shake their heads saying, "Why would you stay there knowing you could get blown away by a tornado?" Here's my answer. Every state or region has its issues. I've lived in other countries and nationwide throughout the US. I've lived through typhoons, tropical storms, earthquakes, ice storms, blizzards, and tornados.  So, to not live in Oklahoma due to tornado would be ridiculous because when it's your time... it's your time. Here's why I live here.  The heart of this community is like none other.  We rise in the face of defeat.  We lift each other up.  We breathe determination. We love with a heart bigger than the heartland itself. We smile when we pass a stranger in the street. We give eye contact and say hello.  We show our neighbor kindne...

This time of year it's tornado after storm after tornado after ... well, you get the point. It rained all day yesterday non-stop. And in the evening, when driving my son to church I noticed how crazy the clouds looked. They were separating on the lower levels and rolling around. The color of the sky wasn't green, which is an indicator of perfect tornado time, but it was 'off.' Right before I pulled out of our neighborhood, the tornado sirens started blaring and I knew I had to head back home to catch the forecast and wait it out in our closet. My son is really good at playing off his emotions. He's not one to show fear unless it's really bad. I made light of how fun it would be to build a tent in the closet and we tried to have the most fun we could. Unfortunately, I still had to listen to the weatherman to make sure I knew exactly where the twister was and could be touching down, and what kid wouldn't freak with that intense language spouting ...