Here is the world. Beautiful and terrible things will happen. Don't be afraid.
Frederick Buechner
AP Photo
AP Photo
Last April 27 a massive tornado struck Tuscaloosa, Alabama. My youngest son, Ian, a then freshman at the University of Alabama, took the following picture just moments after the tornado left on its path to further destruction.
A few days ago, I drove the 11 hour and 38 minute drive with Ian back to Tuscaloosa for his sophomore year. (On the road again. Seems to have become my mantra.) Our arrival rekindled many memories for him - not such great memories of his hasty departure from a city without power or water. Of the newly homeless wandering aimlessly. The agonizing search for loved ones.
We returned to the location where he had taken that picture and he took another.
The sky is blue and no longer menacing. The destruction, albeit somewhat more organized, remains.
This small lake, still filled with debris. A dumpster. Pieces of wood. Pieces of homes. The wrecking crew slowly plows through the once upon a time neighborhood, hauling away the pieces of once upon a time lives. Many demolished homes await the crew that makes its way methodically through the mess that once held such life.
All this land, once filled with homes and businesses. Trees.
Life does go on. This path through the university quad this day bustles with new and returning students. The first day of the new semester, teachers and students, take on the new year in spite of the anxieties many retain from the frantic aftermath.
My boy included.
New room, new classes, new adventures awaiting.
Of course, this meant I had one of those goodbyes that stab my heart.
"Be good, Ian. Do well. I'll see you sometime - soon."
Awful quiet around here.
New room, new classes, new adventures awaiting.
Of course, this meant I had one of those goodbyes that stab my heart.
"Be good, Ian. Do well. I'll see you sometime - soon."
Awful quiet around here.
Gulp. I hope he has a wonderful year.
ReplyDeleteThe photos and stories are still so heart-wrenching.
I've been thinking about the two of you. All will be well.
ReplyDeleteI had never seen that horrific video. It must have taken Ian courage to return to school there; I'm sure they are glad for strong, hopeful young people to come back.
ReplyDeleteVery thoughtful post. You are becoming quite the photo-journalist.
Lump in throat here...I remember that day and thinking of your boy and how worried you must be, then had it hit here in Ringgold! It's amazing how much has been cleared up - and how much remains to be done. I'm sure this has been one of those defining moments for many of the young college kids, both then and now in going back. Wishing him well .. and you!
ReplyDeleteThat kind of destruction is heartbreaking. We had a very bad tornado in a the small town of Goderich, Ontario earlier this week. Thankfully no more than one death but the century old buildings of what was called The Prettiest Town in Ontario" were destroyed along with everything else in the town center. It's just such a shocking event.
ReplyDeleteAlso traumatic is seeing that kid off to school for another year. Hopefully it won't be too long before he's home on break. Be strong!
I would have left with a very heavy heart, made worse by the memories and remains of the devastation caused not so long ago. But, as you wisely point out, life carries on...and, of course, it must! I loved the way in which you shared this with us...your writing is so descriptive and you manage to pack a lot of emotion into each phrase.
ReplyDeleteThose photos and the video are just heartbreaking! As was your good-bye I'm sure. I remember your post right afterwards. Time does heal us all.
ReplyDeleteJules @ Trying To Get Over The Rainbow
That video was terrifying. Seems old mother earth is going to give us a piece of her mind this months. I hate the posts about saying good bye to sons and daughters heading to college. Painful memories. You will feel better as the years go on, but that first year is the hardest.
ReplyDeleteWhat a video!
ReplyDeleteGood skill to your son in Y2.
ReplyDeleteThat was some tornado season the US had--between the South and the Midwest the destruction was unreal.
It's hard to leave one's child at college, and moreso, I'm sure, with the memories of so much destruction and pain. It will be an opportunity for college students to make a difference in their community and to learn some important things in the process.
ReplyDeleteHow glad I am that I do not live anywhere near a Tornade Alley. Good luck to your son on his new term - and hopefully, no tornadoes this year.
ReplyDeleteYour post tugs at my heart too...the Frederick Buechner quote sums it up fully. Scary world for our children and g'children in more ways than one.
ReplyDeleteI am wishing Ian and all of Tuscalosa the very best. Our hearts remain heavy for those in who suffered such great loss. (We ourselves have family there, so eternally grateful they were alright.) Best wishes to you and Ian.
ReplyDeleteHeartstopping. Breathtaking. Thanks for this close-up look at a safe distance and best wishes to Ian (you, too)!
ReplyDeleteAmazing how the cleanup continues. A good storm sends them running after this. I went through one in a tent, and ended up sleeping in my van after losing my fight with nature.My Dad grew up in an area that had a lot,so we spent time in the basement when storms came on.
ReplyDeleteWe cannot escape the terrible, but the beautiful makes it all so worth it.
ReplyDeleteNow I'm just going to wipe away these tears and get to work. ;)
That is so terrifying to get so close to a tornado.
ReplyDeleteI don't think anyone could ever be the same again after escaping that sort of earth shattering experience.
Maggie X
Nuts in May
You know... I see photos of towns just torn from the map and wonder what I would do in that situation. It has to be gut wrenching. How people recover emotionally from that kind of loss is just beyond my realm of understanding. I think I would just lay down and die. Seriously.. how do they find the will to go on. So heartbreaking.
ReplyDeleteTerrifying ordeal and nature is so powerful. Heard a few OMGs on the video and no wonder - I would never have had the guts to get that close. Strange but such destruction takes just a few minutes and to put it right takes months and years. I think the scientists call it "The second law of Thermo-dynamics" - things run down naturally but it takes work and intelligence to create order out of the chaos. That is one reason why I believe in creation and not in "The Big Bang Theory".
ReplyDeleteVery interesting post and grat photos as well. Cheers ~ Eddie
You are getting around travelling with your sons. I am sure that your boy will be fine.
ReplyDeleteI'm doing that for the first time tomorrow and DREADING it.
ReplyDeleteIan has a very strong mother who is setting a wonderful example for her son. The damage and fear that was caused is dreadful but it also is a part of life, it is not what happens to us in life but how we react to it that is important. Sending you big hugs.....:-)
ReplyDeleteIt's been a summer of scary weather. The blue skies bode well. I hope your son has a grand year - uneventful with weather!
ReplyDeleteFrightening! I can't imagine going through something like that. Good luck to your son this year!
ReplyDeleteJarring photos. Mind boggling, really. Hope your son has a calmer semester this time. :)
ReplyDeleteI agree with Snappy di...I have no idea of what I would do..It just seems to me how slowly re-building is..even the cleanup..if they want "shovel ready" jobs and put people back to work..why not start here? instead of all the rhetoric...
ReplyDeleteMother nature's power can be horrifically frightening. And she seems to be lashing out a lot these days.
ReplyDeleteOne thing I have never experienced is a tornado. Frankly, I hope I never do. Just seeing the funnel coming toward me would age me 20 years, and I don't have that many left to give up.
ReplyDeleteThank goodness your son was safe.
Up here in Alberta, we count ourselves lucky to never have extreme weather - and minus 30 doesn't count. With Irene bearing down on the east coast, I can't imagine the anxiety and logistical nightmares involved in evacuating and protecting so many people.
ReplyDeleteOn another note, I can well imagine your road trip groove with Ian, and know that the hours in the car, as tedious as the driving might be, are worth one heck of a lot. What a good mom you are.
A very nice post of tragedy and renewal.
ReplyDeleteAnd your son .. how they grow up fast! How does that happen?
Wow. Those photos say it all. I hope Ian has a wonderful year.
ReplyDeleteThanks for coming by my blog, fellow Texan!
ReplyDeleteWow. Those pictures are heartbreakers. That video is amazingly so. Devastation.
I love your writing style. And I'll be back!
Blessings to you...
The tornado aftermath, I am stuck by how much the trees end up looking like telephone poles.
ReplyDeleteWow, I remember your post from just after the tornado, and to think that even now, it's still devastated.
ReplyDeleteHope his year stays quite.
Nature is implacable. It would sure be nice if she gave us more warning of impending tantrums, though. Hope your lad has a much less eventful year ahead.
ReplyDeleteIt's incredible what a wreck wind leaves behind. And still those people toil to rebuild...silently and without a lot of help.
ReplyDelete"On the Road Again"--will be following your metaphorical (if not actual) footsteps shortly. How quickly, as we move from one Big Weather Story to the next, we forget what has gone before. Your pictures are a solemn reminder that devastation lingers, long after the storm--and the camera crews--have gone. (I keep Joplin, MO in my heart, too)
ReplyDeleteHope Ian has a fabulous year!
Sigh. This is a big week to be considering all types of aftermath.
ReplyDeleteIt must have been particularly hard to leave your son there this time. I'll bet he was glad to have you with him to help the re-entry.
ReplyDeleteHoping your muse enters the new quiet and fills you with stories to tell.
It's your turn, my friend.
Driving through the Texas Panhandle lately, I think of all the crap those people have to endure. And now no rain for months. I wonder if it deepens and strengthens them in some subtle way, though. Maybe Alabamans (and your son, in some way) will be just as positively affected. Your photos are riveting. Thanks for putting this up. EFH
ReplyDeleteThank you for this story. I am an Alabama girl, relocated to Texas. (War Eagle-sorry). I am also a fellow Writer Grrl. I prayed throughout the evening as the tornados ripped through my home state. Good luck to your son in college.
ReplyDeleteBlessings,
Kathy
http://robbinswrites.blogspot.com
Stunning photos as most of natural disasters are.
ReplyDeleteWhen I visited New Orleans after Katrina, I couldn't bring myself to take any pictures. Just remembering the scenes and watching my family's pain was too much. Mother Nature is always going to do what she wants.
P.S. Glad Ian was okay.
ReplyDelete