The Oklahoma Standard

Childhood icon Fred Rogers once said, ~When I was a boy and I would see scary things in the news, my mother would say to me, 'Look for the helpers. You will always find people who are helping.'"~ Without a doubt, the tragedy that happened in Moore, Oklahoma was devastating and not to mention a truly heartbreaking situation indeed as it left a town not only in absolute ruins, but a substantial amount of lives lost. Sadly, some of those lives lost were young children and there are still 6 people who are unaccounted for. It most definitely tugs at the proverbial heartstrings lives have been completely turned upside down. However, an immense tragedy such as this certainly brings together a hurting community, as well as the entire nation watching on television too.

As I said before, a number of the lives lost were young children, 2 of them being infants. Fortunately, the number could have been much higher if it weren't for the heroic teachers of Briarwood and Plaza Towers Elementary School who put their lives on the line to protect their students. I think it's safe to say we've all had the picture of two teachers tightly holding/carrying a student to safety thoroughly ingrained into our memory banks. True, a photo can speak a thousand words and when it comes to that particular photo it causes you to be rendered speechless to the point where tears are shed. Of course, there are tears of sadness but at the same time tears of joy as love who were thought to be lost were thankfully found alive, which is considered to be an absolute miracle.

If you think about it, you have to be thankful to God for the prayer filled miracles of countless kids and adults who were trapped within the rubble of schools/homes. Essentially, countless stories can be told of people/families huddled in a closet, in a storm shelter, or whatever the case may be riding out the monstrous tornado. The stories are unbelievable as one man on the news who suffered no injuries considered himself lucky and described how the tornado itself sounded like a loud freight train. Yet, the personal accounts of the teachers like Sherrie Biddle who instructed her students to put their backpacks over their heads as a safety precaution while situated in the middle of the classroom leave you feeling a mixture of proud disbelief.

Let me ask you this question to those who have been watching the aftermath on the news, do you find yourself wanting to help in any way? You see, what it primarily comes down to money as countless individuals including movie/sports celebrities have stepped up giving large financial donations to the Red Cross or what they can to help rebuild a fallen community. In some cases, social media such as Facebook can be a helpful tool as Leslie Hagelberg created a page in order to help tornado victims reunite items that were blown away as far Mississippi. The said page is called: Pray for Oklahoma - https://www.facebook.com/groups/MAY192013OKTORNADODOCSPICS/ Hey, we are all united as one and do what we can.

Oklahoma Gov. Mary Fallin said, ~We jump in and do what needs to be done and do it quickly and keep in mind that people need our help. And when we do everything we can to make it happen.~ In retrospect, Gov. Fallin did in fact take quick action and was no stranger to awful calamities one of them being the Oklahoma City Bombing in 1995. In any case, what occurred in the aftermath was a woman taking charge holding together her composure as she stood in the middle of a debris field late at night watching dozens of first responders digging for trapped children in a building that once was Plaza Towers Elementary School. In the end, Gov. Fallin proclaimed they're going to come out of this as stronger people with a much stronger resolve as they've done in the past, which is what she refers to as The Oklahoma Standard.