It seems like every time I turn on the radio, I hear stories about natural disasters. Hurricanes and floods, tornadoes, earthquakes, and fires. I'm thinking so much about all the people in Mexico City, in Puerto Rico, in Houston, in Santa Rosa. These kinds of natural disasters are unexpected - much like a glass, accidentally knocked off a table and cracked into a million tiny pieces, rendering the floor treacherous. It's not unimaginable to you that this kind of thing could happen, but you don't expect it at all - and you never feel prepared.

So... what do we say to our kids about natural disasters? How do we prepare them? And what should we say after, if a terrible thing does actually happen? Here are some ideas.