Up at 7 a.m. to get ready to go to one of the towns so devastated by the April tornado. We gathered the food we had prepared over the course of two days, plus all the supplies we would need to provide a meal to whatever family showed up.
Left home around 9 a.m. in hopes of arriving around a 11 a.m. or shortly thereafter. What a calm, blue-sky, balmy spring day for a trip following the horror of the dark day last Sunday, when a massive one-mile-wide tornado tore a 40-mile path through two towns and several communities, flattening hundreds of homes and businesses, and claiming the lives of fifteen people, including two children.
I spent a harrowing evening glued to the TV, as the storm formed and then began touching down. My heart was in my throat afterward until I heard from every member of my family who live in that part of the state. Thank God, they all survived, thanks to sheltering in storm cellars and safe rooms. Most family were untouched by the tornado. The exception was Granddaughter and her family, whose newly built house was destroyed. Fortunately, later they were able to retrieve many family photographs, which are the only irreplaceable material items in a house loss.
The drive down to the other town, by contrast today, was lovely, with red clover, wild sunflowers, and primrose growing along the shoulders of the highway, and fields spread with yellow wildflowers being grazed by placid animals...cattle, horses and goats. There was even an emu along the way, hunkered down, resting and watching the traffic.
But as we approached the other town, we saw and smelled the toxic smoke of the tornado cleanup. Off in the distance, we saw a few buildings...ruins of the town's business district, which was 85% destroyed.
A digital sign at the entrance of the road leading to the town warned that the business district was closed to traffic. This is a step that authorities had to take, because there was a gridlock of traffic that extended for miles, consisting mainly of curiosity seekers.
We, of course, took the bypass around the town to the residential area where Son and Daughter-in-Law, who hosted the family get-together, live. At the road where we turned to go to their home, we met two 18-wheeler semi salvage trucks loaded with cars mangled in the tornado.
Along the way, we saw many concrete foundations completely cleared of the homes that once stood there. Trees, like something out of an apocalyptic movie, stood broken in half, trunks and spindly limbs stripped of bark.
Weirdly, on a small hill, stood a safe room with its door missing. All along the way, emergency vehicles were parked, and a large staging area was set up, standing ready to provide whatever the volunteers needed as they labored to help with the cleanup.
Near the end of the road is Son's house, which miraculously remained untouched by the tornado. Three years ago, when a tornado ripped though the very same residential area, his home and property suffered some damage, but not like the homes that were swept away in that storm. Some folks in the area have now lost homes twice in three years to massive tornadoes.
We spent several hours today at Son and Daughter-in-Law's home. Over the course of those hours, a lot of family (around 30) joined us for a picnic style meal of deli turkey and ham, with cheese, sandwiches, potato salad, macaroni salad, chips, strawberries over angel food cake, with whipped topping, and assorted drinks. Daughter brought a tub of ice cream and a variety of cones and toppings for the kids. This was a big hit.
Part of the fun of the afternoon, was cuddling the newest members of the family, two great-grandsons, born in the past two or three months. And it's always fun seeing all the other greats, too. This was a comforting visit for the main purpose of reconnecting with family after the terrible events of last Sunday.
Around 4 p.m., it was time to head home. We agreed to take Sis home, since her vehicle acted up on the way to Son's house, so that Nephew thought it best to take it straight back home. Sis lives about 30 or 35 miles from Son's house, and after leaving her off, we took the back road home, through a resort town and down the winding road that overlooks the scenic valley in which our town is nestled.
We arrived home 7 p.m. Mother was ready to go home right away, so I accompanied her. As soon as possible I took a plate of ham and potato salad, along with veggie chips, and a slice of angel food cake for her supper. She was plenty ready to eat, since it was a couple of hours past her usual dinner hour.
Once Hubbie and I had unloaded the van, we sat down to eat, too. Then we watched TV for the evening. But phooey, it was very nearly 11 p.m. before I remembered I needed to go to Mother's house to administer her eye drops. Fortunately, she was still awake at that hour.
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