Like many around me, the events of March 10 have been weighing heavily on my mind.

A lifelong Midwesterner, severe weather warnings are part of the norm. You take down flags and other items that could blow away, and you head to the basement out of precaution.

I’ve done this many times in my life, but what happened was like nothing I’d ever experienced.

In the hours leading up to the storm, we were seeing reports of how bad it might get. Heavy rain was anticipated as well as large hail and the likelihood of tornadoes. My husband’s coworker kindly called him and said she had spoken with a storm-chasing friend who said weather channels often overhype storm threats. This time, he said, they were likely underestimating what was to come.

Shortly after I got home, we gathered some items for the basement, and when the hail started crashing down, we took our pets and headed underground. We found a YouTube live stream of a meteorologist who tracks national weather and he was reporting on what was happening in Kankakee County. With a storm chaser on the ground, we watched as the tornado barreled towards South Kankakee.

From there, we all know the rest of the story.

When the stream gave us the all-clear, Keegan and I went outside to inspect the house. Standing in the yard, I held in my hand a piece of hail the size of a baseball. Somehow, our home escaped any damage.

For this, I feel immensely grateful.

It’s one of the many emotions I’ve been feeling in the aftermath.

Another emotion has been anger – anger that something like this could happen. Then anger towards myself for feeling anger over something I know is beyond our control.

It’s arguably a waste of energy to feel angry with Mother Nature, as she cannot be reckoned with. But, as we all know, emotions often are irrational.

Other emotions have included sadness and fear. It’s been difficult seeing the damage done around town. It was heartbreaking to learn that a life was lost.

Amidst all of those emotions, I’ve also felt pride and inspiration. Watching the community quickly come together following such devastation has been incredible. However, it hasn’t been surprising, as this community has shown time and again how committed and resilient it is.

This will undoubtedly be a marker in our history, and it will take time to rebuild. But with the people we have here, I know we can come back stronger.

If you’re looking to help, visit myunitedway.org/disaster.

· Taylor Leddin-McMaster can be contacted at taylorleddin@gmail.com.