Monday, May 30, 2011

Joplin Mo- Love

   You probably didn’t know, my home town is Joplin, Mo. I grew up there and graduated HS from the HS that was torn apart by the tornado.                   joplin_purpleAuntie Lolo Crafts
   For a week now I have been on FB, and all sorts of news sites trying to see what I can and find out how my friends are that are still in Joplin. My parents, brother & I eventually moved a way a few years ago, so they are safe. But after living there so long we all had friends that still live there. Most are well and just trying to help others that had more damage than themselves. But I did lose a dear HS friend and her husband.
   Lorie and I had reconnected the last year or so on FB since our 30th HS reunion is next month. I was looking forward to seeing her sometime other than the reunion, wasn’t going to go, long boring story. When we were in HS together we both participated in choir, flag team and drama. On “senior night” we (Lorie, myself & a group of friends) went to Lories house for a party, then took a ride out to the “spook light” near Joplin, and ended up at HoJo’s for breakfast. It was an all night long, crazy night, that I have mostly forgotten. But not Lorie, she had pictures and memories from that night and shared them with me on FB.
   Lorie and her husband were just back from a Disney vacation, their favorite place in the whole world, to celebrate their anniversary. She was on a “Disney cloudy high” They’d just had so much fun there. But I that doesn’t make me sad, on the contrary, she was just so happy and in love.
   If you have a husband or significant other, you may understand better than others. But Lorie and her husband got to be together at the end. No one wants to be left behind alone. I have no doubt that they are in heaven with God comforting us in the loss of them. You never know when or where we will lose someone, but the loss after is hard, and Joplin has lost too many.
   Joplin is not the only town to be hit by severe weather this season. I feel sorry for all of the homes, business that have had damage in all places in Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma and many, many more states across the country. But Joplin was my home for a long time. Out of all the places my family lived Joplin was most of all “home”.
   Thanks to all my friends here in Kansas, and all over that have lifted Joplin up in prayer. A special thanks to strangers that have taken up the prayers for ones they don’t even know in towns all across the US. You don’t have to know someone personally to pray for their well being and safety. You just have to care.
Peace-

6 comments:

  1. I'm so sorry you lost someone you cared about but I'm glad that most people are safe. Thank you for sharing your story. I think people need to hear personal stories after an event like this so people aren't just numbers on the news.

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  2. Thanks for sharing. What a tragic time this has been. I'm so sorry to hear about your personal loss.

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  3. I'm sorry about your friends. Some of my friends have gone with their churches or schools to help, I can't think of any word to describe what I've seen other than heartbreaking.

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  4. Thank you for using my free print! I will definitely make you an orange one :) Check back later tonight or tomorrow on the blog

    Lois

    www.auntielolocrafts.blogspot.com

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  5. So sorry that you have to live through this tragic event. Our school went through this last year, A EF4 tornado destroyed our high school, and damaged the middle school and elementary. We lost 7 lives. Students lost parents, one of my student lost her whole family. It has been really hard to deal with this tragic event in our small community. Joplin is a much larger disaster compared to ours but the pain still hurts!
    Our superintendent has been talking to your superintendent. We have been raising money for the Joplin schools. When it rains hard, I totally lose students, they and I are always on edge. But we manage to get through it.

    Our hearts go out to you and your community (( Hugs))

    Laura

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  6. I am sorry for your loss as old friends can't be replaced. I am sending prayers for the people of Joplin and I also live in "tornado Alley" in Nebraska.

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