My state has been criticized by the world-wide media.
Living in Tornado Alley should be a shameful act. We should be ashamed of
ourselves for living in high risk natural disaster state. Pat Robertson went
further and blamed Oklahoma for not praying hard enough. The Westboro Baptist
Church plans to protest funerals of children because Thunder star Kevin Durant
donated a million dollars and supports gay marriage. Toby Keith gets criticized
because he does not publicly announce his good monetary donations to help the
victims.
As I sit here typing and listening to
thunderstorms, I am reminded of the two strong people who lived through the
Great Depression and storms. For cows, my Granddaddy built metal barns in his fields. For shelter,
my grandparents had a cement shelter to sit in during tornado season. Each Spring,
watching Mike Morgan’s forecast was the norm for my grandparents. I learned the
tradition early on. I am not able to know another culture. This is a culture
Oklahomans live with. We learn from past tornadoes.
I do not take the media’s criticism of Oklahoma
at face value. One reason I dismiss the criticism has to do with the simple
fact that news reporters criticizing live in other states. The criticism would
be more valid if the news reporters could shed personal insight supporting
their points. Do some of their family members live in Oklahoma? Do they feel
sympathetic to the people and animal who have lost their lives and possessions?
Do the reporters understand the traditions of living in Tornado Alley? If none
of the questions apply to news reporters, then we should take the criticism
lightly. If no news reporter can provide absolute reasoning of personal ties to
Oklahoma, then kindly move on with other news.
I have broken the family tradition this year. I
broke my faithfulness to a news channel that was dear to my grandparents. This has
eaten me up inside the way Romeo’s poisonous drink touched his lips. The meteorologists
simply were not covering important weather in my viewing area. What if an E5
tornado had formed in Northern Oklahoma and that had remained ignored? Southern,
Eastern, and Western Oklahoma would have been in the same helpless open boat. Under
these circumstances, I have a feeling my grandparents would have understood.
I am not ashamed to be a native of Oklahoma and continue to live her. Being born
in the Grady Memorial Hospital thirty three years ago was not chosen by me. At
the time of my birth, winter had arrived. Goodness knows that I am not a winter
person! In fact, I don’t like the intensity of the heat in the scorching summer.
Why I live in Oklahoma is a good, thought-provoking question. Perhaps the answer goes back to
Baptisms at church as a young person. As a congregation, we vowed to support
our loved ones in their faith as disciples of God. I never said, “I will”
without hesitation. Nobody else did either. We followed our Christian faith and
lived by example.
We are unable to control the wrath of Mother
Nature. What man can (or should) control a woman? According to recent tornadoes
in my state, we are aware that Mother Nature can be a moody woman. She can be
downright mean and ugly. Her ways are not our ways. Mother Nature strikes and
leaves. Mankind has to pick up the pieces of her wrath. Mother Nature shows her
temper in the Spring. What a temper! Mother Nature shows no mercy on her people.
Mankind shows mercy through his acts of
generous kindness. I did not forget women in this. When a tornado strikes,
houses and facility get destroyed. People, pets, and cattle are swept up into
the chaos. The mother cries as she realizes her child is lifeless in the cold,
heartless destruction. She curses at Mother Nature for this unforgivable act as
the act is inhumane. Mankind will rebuild, but he will never forget this tragedy.
Nobody else will either. We are still praying, Pat Robertson, faithfully. In God,
we must always trust.
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