by Cathy Jameson

I promise you that I would never have gone grocery shopping had I known what was to come.  I was just getting a little bored and needed to get out of the house for a bit.  Even though it was almost dinner time, I loaded up two of the kids and headed to Costco to restock some bulk items.  

Ronan had dealt with some odd episodes that morning, which kept my focus on him all afternoon.  Besides that, we don’t have cable, and I’d stayed off of the news sites the rest of the day.  I didn’t miss any of the political updates and other stories from around the world.  But I did miss that we were under some severe weather watches. 

On the way to the store, it started to sprinkle.  Light grey clouds had filled the sky all day, but nothing seemed too unusual to me.  Costco was so busy that I couldn’t hear that the clouds had unleashed buckets and buckets of rain while we were in the store.  Not until we got closer to the exit did I see just how messy it looked outside.  Rain was coming down so hard, and it was much darker than I thought it would be – how long were we shopping?? 

We weren’t really in there that long, but we were inside when the weather reports went from we’re under a tornado watch to a tornado warning.

I saw a similar image 2 years ago – it’s genius!

Still, I had no idea we were even under a watch.  I had given up listening to the car radio during Lent several months ago.  I keep it off after Lent turning that quiet driving time into prayer time.  Prayers help me get through some tough moments and through disappointing news.  Prayers would be most welcomed as we not only got caught in a deluge in the parking lot with Ronan in his bulky adaptive stroller.  They’d help get us home through the tornado that was looming in the area.

Running through puddles, juggling the rain-soaked groceries, and then helping Ronan navigate through the rain kept my heart rate up.  Ronan and his youngest sister and I were soaked!  None of us were wearing jackets because none of us expected the torrential downpour, so the drive home in our wet clothes would be a tad uncomfortable.  That didn’t dampen our spirits too much as we were looking forward to being back at the house, ready to try some of the new treats I’d bought.     

While the two kids sat in the back, I turned to my usual prayer routine as I turned onto the highway.  Happy for that quiet time again, I focused on the road.  With just how much rain we were still getting, though, I thought I should probably turn on the radio.  The clouds were getting darker and also a little bit lower.  I found the local station and hoped for a weather report.  I didn’t have to wait too long.

“If you’re on this section of the highway…seek shelter now.  A funnel has been sighted.”  

OH GEEZ!  We had just passed that section of the highway! 

No wonder it looked so ominous out there. 

We’ve driven through tornadic activity before, and holy moley, it’s quite scary.  Every few months we talk about emergency weather plans, but we’ve been blessed with mostly mild weather since the winter and haven’t had those weather convos.  Spring saw some thunderstorms, and it’s been hot and humid all summer, which is not terribly unusual.  We don’t see too many tornados, and would I ever plan to be driving near one if I can help it!  So, I shared a quick lesson with my daughter on what we’d need to do if the tornado, which had touched down right after that new report, was moving in the same direction we were.  That included how we’d have to get Ronan to cooperate with us.  He can be an easy-going kid.  But when he doesn’t want to do something, it can take some creativity on our part to get him to join us.

I wanted to make a bee line home but ended up driving slower than I normally would due to the flooding on the roads.  Once home, we got a battery powered radio on as soon as the groceries were unloaded.  The storms lingered south of us, thankfully.  Even so, we kept the radio on and also looked up what the forecast was for the next few hours.  The weather would continue to be severe in areas close to us, which meant we could experience potential flooding as well as potential tornados.  Before bedtime, we talked about a plan – for the girls, me and Ronan’s sisters – if weather turns, we immediately get to the safe spot in the house.  For the boys, my husband and Ronan’s younger brother – they immediately get Ronan out of bed because he will need to be picked up and taken to the safe spot in the house. 

I don’t like to imagine what could happen during an emergency situation when we’d have to book it out of somewhere quickly.  I especially don’t like to imagine what could happen to Ronan if we can’t get to him or if he refuses to follow directions.  We’ve had a few emergencies to handle, with most of them taken care of timely.  A tornado, though?  I’ve heard those happen faster than one expects, and I know they cause a great amount of destruction instantly.  

Our weather emergency plan fortunately didn’t need to be acted on that night.  The rain subsided at some point while we were sleeping, and our area stayed out of the fray.  Others were not so lucky, but I read that neighbors rallied to help remove storm debris.  We’re grateful to be safe and sound and will hope for that again when the next storm rolls through.

Cathy Jameson is a Contributing Editor for Age of Autism.

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