This morning the news is of the tornadoes that roared through North Texas last night. My thoughts and prayers go out to the families who have lost loved ones and whose homes have been destroyed. Those of us who have never been in the midst of such destruction can’t imagine the horror and pain that tornadoes cause. Reports are saying that the weather bureau issued extensive warnings and without those warnings, the damage would have been much worse.
In the early 1900s, the Latty family at Etta did not have a radio nor even electricity so they were not blessed with advance warnings of an impending storm. I turned in my book, Remembering Etta Bend and re-read what Mom told me about her family’s experience with danger from a stormy sky:
“If the cows mooed restlessly and the horses and mules ran across the pasture snorting into the wind, we knew they sensed something we didn’t. If the yard dog, who was never allowed in the house, tried apologetically to squeeze through the door, things looked serious.
“Several tornadoes roared over the farms at Etta Bend but none touched down with one exception. One day Grandma (Willis) and Aunt Effie were watching storm clouds when they saw the long finger of a tornado dip into the Illinois River. Spray shot high into the air then the tornado withdrew.
“One spring night a crowd gathered at our house for a good time of singing around the organ. Clouds began to cluster before dark but they didn’t look ominous. Then, above the sound of our voices, a low, discordant growl began and grew. We hushed, our hearts hammering, as a thunderous roar passed over the roof.
“What was that?” I asked.
“It must have been a tornado,” Papa answered. “Thank the Lord it stayed up there.”
I’m thankful for the warnings that we now get from radio and television and I take them seriously. I used to tell my sister and brother-in-law who lived in Bowie, Texas that if they needed rain, invite me down because when I came to visit, a storm usually came too.
Once my husband and I were traveling through North Texas on the way to see Helen and Ray and sure enough, the sky in front of us was a bruised green/black and rain fell in torrents. As we passed through one small town, we saw the results of a storm that had been there just before we got there. Fence posts were twisted and store front windows broken. Thankfully, the damage had been slight.
Tornadoes touch down all over the USA, not just Texas. Being from Oklahoma, I’m well acquainted with the destruction these twisters cause. But they even pay visits to states as far north as Minnesota. They can drop from angry skies anywhere. I don’t live in constant fear that a tornado might touch down but I certainly have a healthy respect for the violent side of nature and when the weather bureau issues a warning, I find a safe place until the danger passes.
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