Life
in Tornado Alley
“Nobody
can bring you peace but yourself.”
Ralph Waldo Emerson
I read
through a list of quotes about finding peace this morning—after five tornadoes
ripped through Alabama, coming as close to me as the airport, just three miles
away. I have never been afraid of the weather before—even though Birmingham
sits right on the edge of Tornado Alley. We see a lot of damaging storms here.
But lately, the storms are bigger, stronger and far more lasting. One tornado
that came through yesterday was on the ground for more than 100 miles. The
houses at Eagle Point in Shelby County that you’ll see in the news this morning
were not mobile homes—they were substantial, large, and new. This morning they
look like a giant stomped them. Yesterday was the first time I’ve seen meteorologist
James Spann visibly scared—he stopped in the middle of forecasting to call his
wife. His own home was damaged.
Norman
Vincent Peale said: “The life of inner peace, being harmonious and without
stress, is the easiest type of existence.” When I read that this morning, I
wondered which planet he lived on. I don’t know the person who can maintain
inner peace when an EF-5 tornado is bearing down on them, do you? And we
shouldn’t be at peace because the strength of these storms is a result of
global warming, and we must wake up and address the problem. This is not a
problem for the future, it is right now, right here.
Another
quote I found was, “When things change inside you, things change around you.”
(Unknown) This I believe, but not because I sit comfortably on my
meditation pillow and “Om” my way to inner peace. What must change is the way
we live—our throw away culture—which does, in fact, require that we change the
way we think. My habits matter. And so do yours.
I hope
you came through yesterday’s “tornado apocalypse” unscathed, and for those who
didn’t, I pray you have means to take care of yourself and your family. I know
this community will rise to the occasion and offer comfort, food and shelter.
Right now, inner peace is a long shot, but perhaps we’ll find it through doing
all we can to help one another.
In
the Spirit,
Jane
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