After yet another long, late night and early morning watching James Spann and his meteorologist competitors, we once again find ourselves digging out from under the rubble of a tornado in metro Birmingham.

It’s becoming tiresome, to say the least. But there’s little that can be done about tornadoes — that’s just the way it is in Alabama, so it seems.

We were fortunate in Fultondale, Gardendale and surrounding communities to escape this tornado relatively unscathed. There was some damage to industrial buildings in the Pawnee neighborhood just east of Fultondale, but that was it. The twister literally hopped over our area, jumping from Oak Grove and Alliance over to Center Point and points east.

When the massive tornado of April 27, 2011 hit Fultondale with all its fury, many of the same people who were hit by Monday’s storm were quick to help us. Now it’s time to return the favor.

Your help can take many forms. There’s always cash donations, welcomed by charities such as the American Red Cross and the Salvation Army, as well as similar locally-based groups.

You can also lend your manpower, as many volunteer groups will be needed to help clean up the mess.

It’s the least we can do for our neighbors, just as they did the same for us — the Golden Rule in action. And we know that we’ll probably need them again down the road, and they’ll need us as well.

Because tornadoes, hurricanes and severe weather are a fact of life in Alabama, just as sure as James Spann wears suspenders.