Tornado Alley

I live in Missouri (about 30 minutes south of St. Louis), so that is smack dab in the middle of "tornado alley." We've certainly had our fair share of stormy weather lately, including several tornadoes. Here are a few thoughts about thunder, lightning and twisters:

The first thing I always do when it starts storming is pray! "Heavenly Father, it's storming out and I pray that Thou wilt watch over us and keep us safe. Please protect our house and cars and PLEASE help the power to stay ON!" (More about that later.) The Lord always comes through for us and the storm always seems to pass by without being too violent. I know I risk jinxing myself, so I'm mentally "crossing my fingers" as I write this!

   __There was more severe, tornadic-like weather in my area last night, and Lambert International Airport in St. Louis sustained major damage when the roof was ripped off one terminal and many windows were blown out. They shut down the airport and it will be closed indefinitely until things are repaired. What a mess!

I know you're supposed to go to the basement when there are storms and the possibility of a tornado, but that's not an option for me since I can’t walk downstairs, and there's no way my mom could carry me because I'm too heavy. I imagine it would be difficult for anyone to carry me, even if they were a big brute of a person because dead weight is HEAVY! (And I think it would be painful to have someone manhandle me like that.) There's really nowhere in my house I can go, especially if I were in bed because there are large windows on all sides of me. All I could do is cover my head with a blanket and pray for dear life!

Losing the electricity is a terrible inconvenience for anyone, but especially for someone like me who is dependent on electricity to run the machines that make my life comfortable. Fortunately, I no longer have to worry about my ventilator – a breathing machine that has to be powered by batteries or electricity. Now I have this handy little machine that stimulates my diaphragm and makes it contract 16 times a minute so that I can breathe. The box is about 5 inches tall, 3½ inches wide and an inch and a half thick. It is powered by a battery that lasts for three weeks. (It's the size of a C battery, except it's 21x more powerful.) To learn more about diaphragm pacing systems for people dependent on ventilators, click here. (Or just ask me!)

I also have to worry about my overhead lift and my bed. Although the lift holds a charge for a day or so, it wouldn't work long-term since it needs to be charged every day. My special airbed is the most crucial thing I need electricity for. It doesn't stay inflated if the electricity goes out.

It's crazy how dependent we are on electricity because our lives get even more nutty when the power goes out. No refrigerator, oven, microwave, TV, internet, phone service, computer, etc.