I will lie down and fall asleep in peace because you alone, Lord, let me live in safety.

Psalm 4:8 CEB   

Spring has arrived in southwest Missouri and though we still see temperature drops, they’re shorter and less severe than those of the recent past. Am I willing to plant tender annuals in an unprotected area? Not quite yet, though they are gathered in a safe space waiting until all danger of frost has passed for this season. Then they will make their home in pots surrounding our front walkway.

Along with the newness of spring growth, the scent of hyacinth and lilac blossoms, and the riot of color splashing across our landscapes, there is another aspect of spring that tends to breed discomfort and even fear. If you’ve lived here any time at all, you probably know the sound of a tornado siren and when our forecasters warn us for endless days about storms that may impact our area if all the atmospheric conditions come together in a strategic way, we tend to allow our fears to accelerate. We are not called tornado alley for nothing. Even though the track of the storms may wobble a little north or south from year to year, we pretty much stay in the bull’s eye. So, each spring we gather our supplies; bottled water, non-perishable foods, batteries, flashlights, etc., and secure our valuables so that if we are hit, perhaps something will survive.

Ken and I have had our share of near misses, certainly enough to have earned a healthy respect for those sirens when they sound in our community. Years ago, we stopped in our local Walmart for a few things and parked our new car in the farthest part of the lot so that other cars wouldn’t surround us and ding our doors. While in the store, the sirens sounded, and the power went out. All customers were herded blindly to the back of the store where we waited for a seemingly very long time. Finally, the store associates began leading us out, by flashlight, a few at a time for an orderly exit. We were greeted at the door with utter darkness, an unusual sight (pardon the pun) in an urban area. We managed to reach our car and headed home through wet streets littered with leaves and branches, without the aid of traffic lights, made more difficult by the absence of the driver-side rearview mirror. In daylight, we could more closely inspect the damage to our car. Because we parked it away from the others, it was in the direct path of the tornado which had ripped portions of the roof off the Walmart store and left our new car dinged and dented all over from the flying debris and, of course, dangling the aforementioned mirror. The great news was that we were unhurt as were all the other people in our town.

At another time I was working in Branson while Ken was still employed by MO State Parks. He phoned to tell me that one of the very old growth oaks that had sheltered the front of our home had been extracted from the ground, root wad and all, and laid on our rooftop just above floor-to-ceiling sunroom windows. The tree measured twenty-seven inches in diameter yet didn’t break a single one of those windows. It did pierce a hole through the roof of our kitchen and then the skies offered up three inches of rain, so there was significant mopping up to do but the roof was quickly repaired, and the tree was cut up and stacked for the next year’s fireplace use. Again no one was hurt and we were filled with gratitude. However, Ken’s regional supervisor decided that the other three trees in front of the house had to be removed. It looked so naked without those beautiful trees, but we couldn’t take the chance that another hit would have a good ending.

Our third exposure was less harrowing but nonetheless destructive. That storm passed over leaving a number of trees torn off and splintered but it didn’t damage our home or vehicle. And again no one was hurt.

The community we now call home has been hit hard within the past twenty years so when we shopped for a home, one item became a major attraction. Our current home has an EF 5-rated tornado shelter installed in the garage and it has seen some use in the years we’ve lived here. It’s never been put to the test, but we have spent significant time in it waiting for storms to pass over. We don’t fool around when conditions are ripe for a major outbreak. I secure as much as I can squeeze into that little room in advance and when the siren sounds and our local forecaster’s voices pierce the night with their warning of imminent danger, we head to our safe space. Though we hope it never has to be tested, we’re a bit more comfortable just knowing there is something strong between us and the wind.

He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will rest in the shadow of the Almighty.

Psalm 91:1

Even more importantly, we rely on God to always be our safe place. Under the shelter of His mighty wings, we have the protection of the eternal variety. Houses and cars, even family and friends will come and go, but we can rest assured He’ll always be there for us.

Keep me safe, my God, for in you I take refuge.  Psalm 16:1