What Three Tornadoes Taught Me About Building a Life That Can Weather Any Storm
Over the course of the last six weeks, I have endured 3 separate tornadic events.
🌪️The first tornado severely damaged an investment property I was about to close escrow on.
🌪️The second storm occurred immediately upon arrival to the lake where my husband and I had planned to celebrate our anniversary.
🌪️I drove straight into the third tornado on the way to a doctor's appointment, despite everything (including my phone alerts) telling me to turn around and take cover.
That last tornado actually made me a little self-conscious. Like, was I attracting these storms? Are they tempting my fate? Am I cursed?
I mean, I always talk about health, wealth, and happiness comprising success . . .and all three aspects of my life were forced to endure these terrible storms.
That was past trauma talking, of course, having conditioned me to internalize blame for anything that goes wrong. Obviously, what the weather does is not my fault. But it sure felt like it for a minute!
When I had a moment to process it all, however, I realized something quite profound . . .
No matter what was destroyed in the paths of these storms, the strength of my foundation remained intact.
Think about it.
➡️The investment property was damaged, but the investment still exists.
➡️The anniversary trip was interrupted, but the marriage sustains.
➡️The doctor's appointment was delayed, but my health is intact.
Yet, I was so focused on the extensive damage and loss of life resulting from each storm, that I wasn't cognizant of what survived.
That's not a dismissal of what was lost—it's a chosen shift from anxiety to gratitude.
And I am grateful.
For much of my life, chaos did mean loss. Suffering. Pain. Consequences.
When something bad happened, more bad things followed. That's a pattern my nervous system understandably learned from lifelong abuse.
Having gratitude for what sustained these experiences gave my brain a different story:
The storm came...
...and everything was okay.👌🏼
The sirens sounded...
...and everything was okay.👌🏼
The wind roared...
...and everything was still okay.👌🏼
Looking back, everything is more than okay as a result of those storms.
😀That investment property will be newly rebuilt by the time I close escrow, increasing the value (and our equity) at no cost to us!
😀The tension of being in a hotel with no power during a declared State of Emergency forced a conversation between my husband and I that had been a long time coming but necessary to the longevity of our relationship.
😀The choices I was forced to make in the midst of an emergency tested my self-trust over what others suggested to do in those critical moments.
✨And, most importantly, my husband and our kids were safe. (I was actually quite delighted by my son's message inquiring whether I was okay, knowing I was home alone during that first storm.)
All of these positive outcomes create a powerful corrective experience.
My nervous system got evidence that danger is not always followed by devastation.
Sometimes it's followed by relief, gratitude, and a deeper appreciation for what has been built and how it sustains.
I guess you don't really know how strong your foundation is until life shakes it!
Maybe that's what storms are for.
Not to show us what can be destroyed...
But to remind us what still stands.✨
The question isn't whether life will shake you. It will.
The question is: What are you standing on?
If your confidence, decisions, or self-worth have been built on old conditioning rather than self-trust, now is the time to find out.
Take the Power Shift Diagnostic™ QUIZ and discover the subconscious beliefs that have been quietly shaping your life—because the strongest life isn't built by avoiding storms. It's built on a foundation they can't destroy.
