The Cellar Stairs

This morning at 3:00 a.m. the tornado sirens woke me up! The dogs are so terrified of storms. I could hear them going bananas outside the bedroom door. Even the cat was meowing as if to warn me of the coming storm. I quickly got up and turned on the television to view the weather....Only one meteorologist was broadcasting about a tornado warning for a neighboring southern county and the southwest corner of Jefferson. Usually, all stations would be covering a tornado warning. A severe storm brought lots of rain, lightning, wind, and thunder within the next few minutes. No tornado in our community, but it was a very scary 15 minutes. This morning I was thinking about growing up in a small rural area many years ago. Dad built the house that I grew up in... He had very wisely built a basement, sometimes called a "cellar" in those days. In addition to the regular basement area, there were two dugout areas in the very back where Mom kept her home canned goods. Those Mason jars were filled with such love from our garden. The dugouts were so scary because there was not one hint of light that could reach them. We were by chance the only house within a few miles that had a place of safety when the weather threatened. I remember the cousins and friends coming over as a matter of habit when storms approached. No call was needed. They were welcomed at the basement entrance when the cars arrived. Our family had gone downstairs minutes earlier from a small, dark stairwell off the kitchen. That only added to the adventure! Dad took a lantern to lead us. As folks arrived the adults gathered for a game of ROOK. The kids laughed and enjoyed the "threat" of the storm. Soon one of the men would go outside and say, "Time to go home. The storm is gone." Everyone said goodbyes...and, it was back up the dark stairwell to bed. What memories!!!! Today, my basement is well lit all the way down the stairs from my kitchen...It reminds me of the safety I felt when Dad led the way down those cellar stairs!
Cold weather is moving in...It will be below freezing this evening. Where, oh where, is spring???