I was awakened one night by an approaching tornado. I hadn’t yet fallen asleep. My mind was in that in-between state, very relaxed and meditative, when I heard it say “I’m coming to you.”

There was no sound signaling its approach. All I heard were those words. Then I felt its destructive power. It consumed me. There are no words to describe the force of its energy. I could feel it tearing apart buildings, uprooting trees, and sending debris high into the air. And it was moving towards me.

My first thought was to grab my blankets and pillows and hide in the bathtub. A tornado warning had been issued for my neighborhood. Many of my neighbors were heading for cover. But I wasn’t listening to the television or radio. My only warning came directly from the tornado itself.

As it came closer the feeling of its force increased within me. It was overwhelming. I was in awe. Laying there I felt no fear. It was magnificent. I loved the feel of its power. As it came closer and closer I remained where I was. I felt it. I loved it. The only emotion within me was absolute and pure love.

Moments before it reached me I felt it lift off the ground. I could feel it moving over my head. And then it was gone. I fell asleep.

Later I was awakened again by the sound of sirens. Police, firefighters and ambulances filled the street. They called my location ground zero. It was exactly in the center of the path of destruction. The tornado had traveled along the ground for a mile on one side of my building, then lifted off the ground for about a hundred yards, and then came back down on the other side leaving another mile of destruction.

I remembered its words, “I’m coming to you.” It didn’t say it was coming ‘for’ me. It had no desire to harm me or anyone else. It was simply a force of nature, all part of the natural order of being. In reality it was no different than a gentle cooling breeze on a hot day. Only its magnitude made into something to be feared.

We’re not normally afraid of the sun. Yet finding ourself alone in the desert without water or shelter might cause us to see it differently. It is circumstance that we notice. We label it good when we want it and call it bad when we don’t. But the circumstance itself is what it is, nothing more or less except as we make it so with our thoughts.

Is the natural world under our dominion? My experience might offer evidence that it is, at least to some extent. Maybe we just need to love a little more and a little more often. Maybe that’s what Jesus did when he calmed the stormy sea. Rather than by force of will, all he had to do was offer his love. And the sea responded in kind.

Love may just be the most powerful force in the universe. Maybe The Beatles were right, all we need is love.