a reminder

Some good things have been happening in my hometown lately:

• a news promotional piece highlighting the Auburn University students who have volunteered their summer, time and energy and made Cordova an engineering project. They've developed plans for downtown that incorporates flood plains, and they're also underwriting all the grant projects. 
• a manufacturer of playground equipment is donating some playground equipment similar to what they have at White Deer Park, since all their antique swingsets and broken down jungle gym was destroyed
• a group has taken on the Veteran's Memorial (which was only a few years old when the tornado hit it) and have raised about 1/4 of the money needed to replace it

So I guess all of these activities has me thinking a lot about the tornadoes and the horrible changes my hometown has faced this last year and a half. There are plans to re-open the grocery store in a new location. It's now a matter of when and not if.  Last week when had sevearl bad storms and some fairly fast-paced clouds moving, my mind instantly went back to childhood tornado drills and then my hometown.

And that's when I saw this:

This photo doesn't do it justice, but I needed this reminder, so very much. It made my heart sing. As that old spiritual our choir sometimes sings goes:

No, we are not alone.

We are not alone.

God is with us.

He is with us.

Forever and ever,

We are never alone.

No, not alone.