Life has a way of reminding us that we’re not the center of the universe, nor are our petty problems. Just when it seems politics and standoffs, manufactured and otherwise, have taken control, something like Sunday happens.

Anyone who’s lived in Arkansas more than a couple of minutes has come up against at least one tornado (though likely many more than that). Many of us have lost loved ones, homes and businesses; some have been seriously injured.

At times like this, I always think of the April 1980 tornado cluster that hit large areas of where I grew up in rural western Arkansas, especially hurting Witcherville, a few miles from my home. I remember sitting in the church basement (because we had no storm shelter) for what seemed like days until all the twisters had passed.

But even more, I remember what happened afterward.

People who had escaped serious damage showed up in droves wherever in that area someone was in need, bringing food, water, clothes and other necessities, as well as lending a hand or hammer to help those who’d suffered recover a little faster. My parents, brothers and I were part of that, and we spent the better part of the weekend handing out sandwiches, hugs and help cleaning up to our friends, family, neighbors and strangers.

No one had to ask for help; it was just there because that’s what neighbors do for each other.

It was heartening, then, to see how many ordinary people have been showing up to help with cleanup in Mayflower, still reeling from the Pegasus pipeline spill, and Vilonia, which was just coming back from a devastating tornado almost three years to the day before Sunday’s storm.

The scale of the damage by the half-mile-wide tornado-which cut a 40-mile path-is almost unimaginable, in part because those two towns had already suffered through so much.

Vilonia’s new intermediate school that was to open in the fall was destroyed, as were many homes and businesses, some having been rebuilt after the 2011 tornado. A resident who spoke to the Weather Channel described the scene as being “like a war zone.”

At least 60 homes were estimated to be at least heavily damaged in Mayflower, and a medical triage had to be set up in a home-improvement store parking lot to take care of the injured. Coincidentally for me, Mayflower was also struck by the 1980 twisters that devastated part of western Arkansas.

Along Interstate 40 north of Little Rock, stuck semis, trucks and cars were tossed and shredded, creating massive backups; astoundingly, no one died there.

In Arkansas as of Tuesday afternoon, though, 15 were confirmed dead: at least 11 people in Faulkner County (most of them in Vilonia), along with three in Pulaski County and one in White County. The storm system also spawned tornadoes Sunday in Missouri, Kansas, Nebraska, Iowa and Oklahoma, killing at least two more people. On Monday, more tornadoes hit Mississippi, Tennessee and Alabama, killing at least 14 people. The state has come together and manpower, food, water and other items have been donated. Pleas have gone out for chain saws, generators and other tools, some of which have been provided for free by local businesses. Drop off locations for donations have been set up for those who can’t get out to the areas in need.

On social media, the hashtags #PrayforArkansas and #ArkansasStrong have been trending on Twitter, and meteorologists, reporters, government officials and ordinary people have been spreading the word about the needs of those affected and the latest updates on damage, and even pleading for help to get lost photos back to families who’ve lost everything else.

People across the country and around the world have sent well wishes and contributions to help the cause. “Honorary Arkansan” Lou Myers of Westminster, Great Britain, noted in a letter to this paper: “I am, now in my later years, quite used to reading about the wars and banditry and the sorry state in parts of Europe and the Middle East, but sir, they do not have the same impact on me when reading about a part of the United States that I have come to love as more or less my own. … Pass on my deepest respects and sympathy to the people of Mayflower. Please let them know, that although 8,000 miles away, that we are aware of their losses, and wish them our very warm feelings and respects.”

A tweet from Dylan Teague of Russellville summed it up better than I ever could: “It’s discouraging to see the widespread devastation in my state, yet reassuring to see people rise up to help one another.”

I’ve always believed that when people come together to help others with no thought to themselves, that good deed spawns others and makes the world that much better.Even more than that, this is our state; these are our neighbors, our family, our friends.

Want to know how to help? The Red Cross and Salvation Army are accepting donations, as are several area churches and other organizations. Check the list elsewhere in the paper or online for contact information.

We’re Arkansans, and we can do this.

———◊———

Assistant Editor Brenda Looper is editor of the Voices page. Read her blog at blooper0223.wordpress.com.

Editorial, Pages 19 on 04/30/2014