Thanks to Laura for sharing this link:
Portraits From a Storm My thoughts of storms changed that day. Many have experienced what once seemed, something that happens to someone else. The storms that day touched so many lives close to us. These storms seemed to be luck of the draw; Houses that stood untouched were directly beside houses that were totally gone. 
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After the storms there were memories that came back to each one of us; stories of storms past. The storms of the past were by no means as extreme to my family as were these. I remember the storms of April 3, 1970-something. They touched down in Whitehead Community; about a mile from us. We did not go to the storm shelter that night; we got in the hallway of Grandmother's new brick house. There was the storm shelter that our closest neighbors had, but we did not go there very often. There was water that stood in it most of the time. There was also a still fresh memory of the Cottles girl that got struck by lightening on her way into their family storm shelter in the Springfield community. Grandmother took note of this and considered us to be just as safe in her new brick house.
The house that I raised my children in had basically the same water problem in the basement. The stories my girls tell of their childhood at times make me feel as though maybe we were more disfuctional than I want to admit. Jessica says that she still gets her shoes on as soon as it comes up a cloud. This being because that was what I always told them, "get up and get your shoes on; we've got to go to the basement.
The storms hit very close to Jessica's twin sister; she is even more afraid than she has ever been. My mama attributed to the fears my girls have, I am sure. She was terrified every time it thundered. I had the same conversation with Jessica that I had with my mama, many times, recently. She was not sure on the direction bad weather travels. The northeast direction did not register with her; until we explained in detail to her. She now gets which way the storms are coming from and when they are past her location. To explain in detail to her in a nutshell; my house in Florence will be the first path a bad storm will pass; then little sister that lives in eastern part of Lauderdale county; then to your house in Clements; then last of the three girls house in Athens. Once the storms are in Madison County our family will be able to stop the four-way cell phone conversations. We can rest for the night.
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The last night of storms brought a bit of humor for us to share. The youngest was awakened by my phone call. The phone call I knew she needed. The earlier call had totally slipped her mind and she was sound asleep when I called her at eleven-o'clock. She was now awake and ready to prepare for the weather. The power was lost almost as soon as I reached her on the phone. Her husband sound asleep was awakened by her plundering around the house. She had somewhat tried to get him into gear with her; failing at this she hunted candles and a flashlight in the dark herself. She then realized that he had gotten up. This was the best thing that had happened since I called her. He was now awake and she had help; as he walked throught he house she clamped on to his arm ready for them to ride-out the storm with a great plan such a manly man will come up with. She is now holding his shirt as he goes to the refrigirator, opens it and gets him a drink of water. He drinks the water and turns to go directly back to bed. Now to her surprise, she is shocked that she was so sure that he was up to man-up against the weather. Good thing she is smart and tough enough on her own.
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