Check out the storm damage. Bonham Park is now Bonham Field.

I feel lucky that my home was undamaged despite the proximity of the tornado. I was merely inconvenienced.

I hesitate to use the term blessed or thank God for my safety. It sort of implies that I deserve some favor over another person. The people who had their homes damaged or destroyed could very well be morally and spiritually better than me. They are just as worthy of safety as I am. This sort of event causes me to cast doubt upon the concept of a personal God that is actively involved in the everyday affairs of humanity. This concept is often tied to the idea that this personal, active God is also compassionate and loving and does not wish for his children to suffer. Those two ideas tied together really cause me to doubt. I believe in the existence of God but not as defined by religions with which I am familiar. I do not have the vocabulary to define God and the concept is too large to define.

God is everything. Love and hate. Good and evil. Peace and war. Creation and destruction.
Sin and virtue. Dark and light. Spiritual and material. Meaningful and random.

Sounds a bit Taoist. It helps me make sense of it.

The people whose homes were destroyed or damaged seem grateful to be alive. I suppose one could thank God for that.

I count my blessings only to give me perspective and happiness. Some blessings are gained by my efforts and others are received without any regard to personal merit. I am grateful for both. Some curses are received because of my efforts and others are received without regard to personal merit. I only appreciate those as a reminder of how good I have it and to learn from the curses caused by my own mistakes or stupidity.

Shalom.