Sasee Magazine

Cool, calm and collected – I wish I could say those adjectives describe me. I’ve always admired people who remain calm under pressure and aren’t easily riled. But unfortunately, I am prone to overreacting. I am known to fly off the handle, and instead of cool, calm and collected, I would be better described as frantic, frazzled and frenetic.

These personality traits are not unique to me and are not entirely my fault. Some parts of our genetic makeup (my maternal genes) are just too strong to fight, and my tendency to exaggerate happens to be one of them.

My maternal grandmother has always been a worrier. If she hears that there was an accident on any of the roads that my family members travel, she calls us all to make sure we are OK. “Mama, that wreck was in Stony Creek,” my mom will say. “That’s nowhere near us.” And if I stay home sick for a day, and my voice doesn’t sound normal, she will say, “Oh my God! Do you have pneumonia? You sound terrible, doll baby. Have you been to the doctor?” I will tell her that I haven’t and that it’s just a cold, and I will hope that she won’t worry.

But if she is not worried about traveling or about someone being sick, then my grandmother, Mammie, is probably watching and worrying about the weather. She knows what is happening across the entire nation, from cold fronts and ice storms, to flooding and wildfires. She is aware of approaching inclement weather and could fill in today for any seasoned meteorologist. But with only one problem – she often miscalculates the proximity of the storms.

So it’s safe to say that I inherited this quirk. I was home alone a couple of years ago, and I was in the bathroom when my grandmother called to tell me that the tornado watch had been upgraded to a warning and a funnel cloud had been spotted. I quickly grabbed my dog, my flashlight and some pillows and hid in my closet – the only interior room I had. I waited – and listened – and waited, and then the telephone rang. It was my husband. I told him what was happening, and he flipped on the Weather Channel at his work to see what I was talking about. “You’re right,” he said. “There are tornadoes – in Texas!” I live in Virginia.

I live in Wakefield, Va., to be exact. It is a very small town with a very big heart. And since we are so small in numbers, we have a volunteer fire department. So, whenever there is an emergency, the siren wails, and everyone rushes to his or her scanner to find out where the action is.

One night, at about 11 pm, the siren went off while we were spending time with my mom and dad at my house. I was about to call my grandmother so she could listen to her scanner. But when I reached for the phone, I could see from my window that something didn’t look right. “Dad,” I said. “Look outside and tell me if the sky looks orange to you.” So he did – and it was. I didn’t need the scanner; the fire was close enough to see, hear and smell from my front porch.

My mom grabbed her phone and started calling people. “Something’s on fire in Melissa’s neighborhood!” she screamed. “Find out what it is; it’s really close!” Then, my mom went outside and watched as the fire trucks turned down my street. “Wayne,” she said. “It’s really big; do you think we should get out of here?”

But my dad didn’t have time to answer. “We’re leaving!” she shouted. “Grab some of your favorite things and let’s go!” So I did. I got my photo albums, my laptop, important documents and my dog. We piled into the car, backed out the driveway and by the time we got down the road, the fire was under control.

A few minutes later my grandmother called to check on us. “My God,” she said. “By the way you sounded I thought you were actually in the fire!” But we weren’t. We evacuated from a fire that was two streets away.

As a rule, we don’t deal well with emergency situations, and we’ve never been able to keep our composure. We’re a bit crazy, especially the women in my family. And we’re especially crazy about each other. So when all is said and done, it’s nice to know that I am one of the reasons my grandmother and mother overreact. It feels good to be loved that much. It sets my heart ablaze.