wowsers.

December 31, 2010 left a mark to remember in St. Louis.
It was the day of a tornado.
Here in The Lou.
I am a bit of a freak about bad weather.
I heed warnings.  I take cover.  I put my shoes on.  I pack pudding cups and Uno cards in a basket to keep the kids busy.
Friday was weird.  It seemed weird.  The weather was oddly warm.  Everyone was talking about the weather...storms were brewing....
 The sirens went off.
 No rain. 
Nothing. 
Adam was out. He was running business errands and grocery store stuff.  I called to tell him to get on it!  He kind of dismissed me, knowing my storm weirdness. He said we was at xxx location and I said THE STORMS ARE 30 MILES AWAY!  he assured me it was a-okay.
After he got home, we hurriedly put the grocery's away. 
We were all nervous. 
An uncertain nervous. 
Checking the sky for we didn't really know what. 
Just that feeling...
I text ed a friend.  Joking that we had our shoes on and were watching the skies.
She text ed back, she was at JCPenny's.
I said. GET HOME. It's serious...
A little while later....
We were in the basement.
Adam was pacing the first floor.
I could tell something was 'off'.
He was listening to the radio. 
All of the sudden...the lights went out. he gave me a sleeping bag and said...
'go around the corner.'
We were talking business.
A tornado was spotted at an intersection very close to our house.
It was an F3 as a matter of fact.
Luckily, we were spared.
Many were not.
It was only by God's timing that no one was hurt or killed.
The damage is incredible.
Homes destroyed. 
Belongings lost forever.
Hearts broken.
We live in an urban area.  Meaning, we aren't in the rural parts.  This stuff doesn't happen here.
It was a true wake up call.
Maybe not for me that thinks the warnings mean business no matter the time of day, but for others that thought since we were in 'the city' it wouldn't/couldn't happen...
Adam went out shortly after the storm.  He took pictures.
I am sharing a link to the picture from the newspaper.  It is much more effective.  I feel less guilty sharing the link then sharing the pics he took...I feel we invaded their privacy/ vulnerability (don't worry I told him that!)

Once again, saying prayers of thanks for sparing so many lives.  It could have been so, so much worse! 
~chat soon!