On Friday of last week, my mom called me. She and I had been trying to plan a time to go to South Dakota to see my Grandma, who is 99 years old. I hadn't seen Grandma since Christmas 2012 (see posts in December of that year for more on that trip.) Since that time, Grandma has fallen in her home and now requires 24 hour "companion care." This just means that there is someone at her house at all times, even overnight, to help her with daily things like getting dressed, bathing, going to the bathroom, walking around, etc. However, as of late, Grandma has started refusing to get dressed, bathe, or even get out of bed sometimes. She's also been reading the bible a lot more, and making cryptic comments like, "Well, you'd better come soon," when people talk about coming to see her.
So on Friday, May 16, my mom called and said, "Can you go on Sunday?"
I said, "As in the day after tomorrow, Sunday?"
"Yes."
"Well.. sure!"
So off we went. I was a bit nervous about it because I'd had some more random spotting on Saturday, but it miraculously quit by Sunday morning. So I went anyway.
Now, I should take a minute to mention that I've been flying to South Dakota nearly every summer for my whole life. As long as I can remember, once or twice a year, we make the trek to South Dakota which consists of 2 flights and about an hour drive. In the summertime, it is a PAIN. Especially when you fly through Denver, Colorado, which we always seem to do nowadays. We used to fly through Minneapolis or Chicago, but lately it's been Denver every time.
Denver is notorious for thunderstorms and weather related delays. At least in my opinion it is. I swear to god, every time we fly through there between May and August, we get delayed like crazy because of thunder. So I found it nothing short of a miracle when we flew into and out of Denver, CO, on time Sunday, May 18. (The approach was extremely bumpy, but that might have just been wake turbulence. It was crazy! The wings were dipping all over the place almost up until we touched wheels to tarmac. When we finally bounced down and slowed, the flight attendant said on the mic, "Everyone okay?" Lol.)
My iPhone showed thunderstorms forecasted for the afternoon of May 21 (yesterday.) Our flight out of Sioux Falls was scheduled for about noon. It's roughly a one hour and ten minute flight, with a one hour backwards time difference. So basically we arrived in Denver about the same time we left Sioux Falls (12:15pm.) According to my phone, the thunder was supposed to come in around 1:00pm. As we walked to find food, I passed a TSA agent whose walkie-talkie was blaring about a tornado watch, in effect until about 3:00pm. That morning, my grandma's caregiver had been telling us that there was supposed to be tornado watches and warnings for Denver. "Great," I said to my mom. "We might have to deal with a tornado too."
This might be a good time to let you all know that I am absolutely TERRIFIED of tornadoes! When I was in the 4th grade I did a report on tornadoes. Big mistake! That following summer, we were in South Dakota at a hotel for a family reunion and I looked at the sky one day and said, "Mom there's going to be a tornado!" She didn't believe me, told me to stop saying that because I was scaring my sister, etc. The sky turned green, the clouds came down really low, lightning and thunder, sirens, hotel pool evacuation, wind wind WIND! Now, when I tell her there is going to be a tornado, she believes me!
I've had countless nightmares about tornadoes. It's not the same dream, but always similar. I'm in a car or a building, usually with other people, and see that funnel cloud come pawing its way down out of the clouds, light on the ground with a puff of dirt, and come roaring towards us. And we can't get away.
Those nightmares very nearly became a reality yesterday! We were sitting by the window (not smart, I know) watching the thunderstorm, drinking Cinnamon Rooibos tea from Caribou Coffee, when to my intense horror the sirens went off! My mom leaped to her feet, almost spilling her tea. I didn't move at all. A voice came on the system. It said:
"May I have your attention please. The National Weather Service has issued a tornado warning that includes Denver International Airport, it's terminals and concourses. Please remain alert for further instruction."
This message repeated three times. So we just stayed where we were. I was looking out the window and the sky didn't look that bad. It wasn't green, I didn't see humongous dark thunderheads hanging down towards the earth like I had before. Nothing looked ready to drop on us. I could see some lightning but the clouds seemed to be moving to the southwest, away from DIA.
My mom said she had to go to the bathroom so we got up to walk over there. (Personally, I think she was just nervous and the bathrooms are where the tornado shelters are.) So we walked across the concourse... and as we did I looked out the window on the other side.
It was my nightmare.
All I could see out that window was a giant wall of black. If the clouds had a sound effect just then, it would have been snarling like a lion about to pounce. Gray tendrils of clouds hung down, batting at the earth, like tentacles off a squid. They taunted us on the ground. I'm gonna getcha.... I'm gonna getcha! Better run! A huge piece of gray cloud came down toward the earth and then went back up. Just kidding... making sure you're paying attention. The clouds writhed and squirmed, low in the sky.
(photo credit: my mom)
As we stood there, agog, TSA agents came speed-walking down the moving sidewalks in the center of the concourse, calling out, "Bathrooms and stairwells please! This is an active tornado! Bathrooms and stairwells, right now!"
My mom and I went into a women's bathroom with a ton of other people. Even men! We all hid out in the bathroom, waiting to either hear destruction or word that it was safe to come out. My mom was in full nervous-chatter mode. Most everyone else wanted to sit quietly, but my mom was trying to make jokes and conversation. Some people were texting on their phones. Some just stood or sat there.
After what felt like forever, but was probably only about 20 minutes, someone said, "So how will we know when we can come out?" This was a good question. There were no airport personnel in the bathroom with us. We thought they'd probably make an announcement but then again they hadn't made any announcement on the loudspeaker about going into the bathrooms, so maybe an airport employee would come in and tell us. Someone said that somebody should go look out the door, but for whatever reason nobody wanted to do that.
So I went! I walked to the door of the bathroom, and looked out. Everyone was just walking around like normal out there! I went back in.
"Everyone is walking around like normal!" I said.
"Like with their suitcases?" "In the concourse?" "Everyone's out?"
"Yes," I answered, and as I said that, the loudspeaker came to life.
"May I have your attention please. The tornado is no longer a threat."
Everyone came streaming out of the bathrooms and stairwells everywhere. We walked up to the Departures board only to find that our flight was canceled! So we got to sit around the Denver airport for an extra 6 hours, and finally got home after 10:00pm.
Someday, when my kid is older and wants me to tell him/her a story, he/she will say, "Mommy tell me about the time that you were pregnant with me and you and Grandma had to hide in a bathroom from a tornado...."
(a pic from the internet of May 21 storm in
Denver, Colorado.)
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