Two nights ago – Tuesday, October 16 – many in Lowell felt the tremors from a 4.5 earthquake the struck in southern Maine. Little damage was done and some, like me, didn’t even feel it. Others described it as having someone working on the roof or having a helicopter flying low overhead or a big truck rumbling down the road. Fortunately, even at ground zero of the quake, damage was limited to a few cracks in foundations, nothing more. Still, it was a reminder that nature and other forces have the potential to turn out everyday lives upside down at any moment.