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in Firsthand Accounts

Thunderstorms with Gladys

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We had fierce thunderstorms here yesterday evening. Lots of wind and thunder and lightning. Storms like these always remind me of my mom, Gladys MARTIN HEISER (1921-1999).

color photo of a late middle-aged couple; woman wearing a grey dress and jacket', she has short and wavy brown hair; man wearing a light grey suit and a dark blue tie and white shirt' he has short graying hair; both are smiling

my parents, Gladys and Charlie Heiser

 

Storm sitting with Mom

My mom was terrified of thunderstorms. When my sister, Joyce, and I were growing up, at the first sign of a thunderstorm, Mom would close all the blinds in the house and insist we go to the basement.

color photo of large Venetian blinds, closed and with shadows of a tree and branches coming from the outside, and a lamp in front of the blinds

Photo by Chuck Patch, click photo for more info

Once she became unable to climb the steps easily because of arthritis, she would have us sit with her in the living room until the storm passed. In either location we had to be quiet, and we weren’t allowed to use the phone or run water.

 

 

 

 

Dad was different

Our dad, Charles Leroy HEISER (1913-2001), has a different way of handling thunderstorms. He would sit on the front porch and watch them!

Random lightning strike

For a long time, I never questioned my mom about her way of handling storms. She was MOM, after all, and she knew best. But as I got older, I wanted to go on the porch with my dad during storms. He survived the storms just fine, and seemed to actually enjoy them. Joyce joined him sometimes, and she survived, too.

Why Mom did what  she did

Finally, I asked my mom why we had to stay inside, close the blinds, and all the rest.

She told me this story: “When I was a kid, a bad storm came up one day, really quick. Mother sent me and the others out to get the chickens back in the coop before the storm really got bad.” (I guess my grandmother had learned it was easier to gather the chickens before the storm than after.)

“The wind was blowing hard, and the sky was getting dark. The chickens were going in all directions. I was running across the yard, and as I went under a tree I was struck by lightning that had come down through the tree.” (At this point, my eyes were big, and I was speechless.)

color photo of a green-leaved tree branch against a grey sky; a bolt of lightning is striking the tree

photo by Emmett Tullos, click on photo for details

“Someone picked me up, carried me in the house, and laid me on the couch. I was unconscious, and when I came around I couldn’t walk. But after a while I was able to walk again.” *

I didn’t know what to say. I clearly understood Mom’s storm precautions now.

As we got older and more responsible, Mom no longer pressured Joyce and me to stay inside during storms if Dad was home and on the porch. It became our choice. Mom still stayed inside, though, whenever a bad storm came up.

A bit of Mom and Dad both

As the storms started yesterday evening, I instinctively reached over and lowered the blinds at the window by my desk. A little while later, though, I went out on the porch to briefly watch the storms.

* Keraunoparalysis is a frightening and distressing complication of lightning strikes. The syndrome consists of limb paralysis, sensory symptoms, pallor, coolness and absent pulses. Release of excessive catecholamines is said to be responsible for these findings. Fortunately, the condition is transient.

Copyright © 2017  Nancy H. Vest   All Rights Reserved

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Comments

  1. Marty Weiss says

    September 6, 2017 at 1:35 pm

    As children we usually don’t know the traumas our parents experienced and how it has shaped their behaviors to us and towards the world in general.
    Lightening strikes, childhood starvation or deprivation, abuse, war, any number of negatives that impacted upon our now adult parents lie buried in their memories. Finding out those traumas and experiences depends upon our parents’ willingness to talk about them… not always an easy thing for them.

    Reply
    • Nancy H. Vest says

      September 6, 2017 at 2:11 pm

      You’re so right, Marty. And sometimes it isn’t until a person is dying that they tell. Thanks for commenting. 🙂

      Reply
  2. Michael says

    September 23, 2017 at 10:03 pm

    Wow! What a terrible experience for a child. It’s so fortunate she survived. I certainly don’t blame her storm protocols! Thank you for sharing.

    Reply

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