The weather was so beautiful last week that I went outside and worked in the yard.
I raked leaves out of the garden and flower beds. I planted the two primroses that I had purchased a couple of weeks ago. I raked and picked up the sticks that littered the yard around the house.
The yard was now ready for mowing, as soon as there is grass to mow. I admired the yard as I walked or drove on Sunny Lane.
I made a mental note to clean up the lower part of the yard as soon as I got the opportunity.
And then the winds came. And then the electricity went off.
Sweetheart and I put our emergency procedures into place and then sat in the house and listened to the wind blow. Occasionally, we would look out of the window to see a large limb break loose and fall out of a tree. A couple of times we saw a tree fall along the edge of our property or the neighbor's.
The electricity was restored a couple of hours later and our life was able to get back to normal--or at least, as normal as it gets.
The next morning I looked out of the window to see the yard full of sticks and little branches once again. You wouldn't know I had spent several hours cleaning it up. I had a flashback to when the children were small and I picked up toys--and picked up toys--and picked up toys. There is probably no end to picking up little limbs and branches.
As the day wore on, Sweetheart and I made our way to church. The church we attend is 15 miles away from our house and we travel secondary roads to get there. The trip usually takes us about 20 minutes. That day it took us 30 minutes.
Three times we came upon orange cones and signs that said, "Road Closed." Three times we had to take alternate roads. Along the way, we saw huge trees that had been blown over. We saw carports that had been smashed by a fallen tree and vehicles that were damaged.
Two days later, Sweetheart and I were driving home from the dance at night. We still saw houses with no lights on and a crew working to restore power.
Since then, I have thought about people in the southern states who have been victims of tornadoes. They have lost vehicles, houses, and lives. They have to start all over from nothing.
And then I thought about people in other countries who have never had electricity--or houses or cars.
Come to think of it, raking up sticks isn't such a bad job.
Dorothy is the author of two books—“Miles and Miracles” and “Getting It All Together “. You can purchase a book or make a comment by emailing her at dorothybutzknight@gmail.com