From the Storm (and after)

Powers out, and the internet with it(i'm writing this with the precious little battery i have left inmy iPod.)so I don't know when this'll go up... But, power will probably be back on when it does...

So, if you've read much of this blog, then you probably already know about my atypical feelings towards storms. After a powerful storm, like this one which tore down trees (mostly leaving them strewn across streets) and leaving us without power, I get to thinking about things (Dangerous, I know.), about why I feel the way I do...

Even when I'm out being a wild maniac, or when I'm helping neighbors clear away wreckage from the streets during a calm, I still feel warm. Safe. Protected. Perhaps this is because I've never suffered injury, or perhaps it's because no one I know personally has been hurt, or perhaps it's because i'm young and foolish; but I think it's more than all those, true though they may be.

Storms, in all their fury and power, remind me of God's power, remind me that He is looking out for me, even when I don't realize. It makes me think about how truly blessed I really am. And it gives me energy.

Sometimes though, I stop, I remember others who may or may not be suffering in the storm, who might be in danger, who are out of my reach. For a moment, I forget God, so lost to worry and helplessness am I.

And that is a terrible place to be. Every sound of thunder, every clash between ground and sky, becomes something to fear--not for myself (never for myself), but for others, even and especially for those I don't know as well as I should. Every siren crying in the distance becomes a lucid nightmare, and I feel guilty about the joy of moments before. When that happened, it is hard to trust. Control goes out the window.

Yet even then, God did not abandon me. Somehow I became able to think rationally again, to pray. And after a moment's prayer I gained the strength to once more leave my fears and worries in his hands. And that is a good place to be, one I never want to leave.

Wherever you are, and whoever you are, I pray that you stay safe against whatever chaos or uncertainty you might be facing; and I pray that you, too, might know the comfort and joy that I'm feeling now.

Go mbeannaí Dia duit,

M. S.

Update: Yes, it's roughly ten o'clock the night after the storm, and power is back. Yippee skippee! Alleluia! And everyone who still has no power, hold in there. I'm praying for you, and the women and men of the power company are surely working their hardest.

P.S. Please excuse all the tense shifting and clunky prose. It's not my best work, but I don't think I'm going to edit this post. Just cause. Also, I'm very thankful I live in a neighborhood where people go out and help each other the same night the storm came through. I talked to people I don't think I've ever talked to before, it was very cool. So I'm very thankful. I'm just thankful for everything right now.

Whooppee! skibberoo! Life is good! (Darkness really is only for light to shine in.)

And now I'm just drawling on. Sorry. Goodnight all. :)  ... ... ... (I just used an emoticon? Ah, must be the caffeine kicking in... Caffeine, another thing I'm thankful for...

Seriously, goodnight. I mean it this time. I think. Night night!

Mickel out.

Let it rain

It stormed last night and, as always, it brought excitement with it.

There is a standing tradition in my house that, when it rains, people go outside. Now, I'm not talking about sitting on the porch like sane people (why would we, any of us, be sane?), no, my siblings and I go where the wind batters us and we can feel the water sliding past our feet.

Sometimes, we put on felt fedoras and trenchcoats, we walk and talk like we think it's the '40s and Chandler wrote us. Other times, we race outside at the first crash of thunder, not bothering with silly things such as coats or shoes. We run and howl with the wind, finding within the storm a kindred spirit... Actually I think it's just me that does that last—the bare feet thing, I mean.

I don't know what it is about storms, but I love them, I love being in them. Perhaps it's their wild, rampant energy. Perhaps they make me feel more alive... I don't really know, and maybe if I did I wouldn't be drawn to them so much (unlikely).

There's just something about being in the wet, where I can feel the thunder—when I'm there, I don't feel fear. Storms, it seems, are made for me, and I thank God for every one. Lightning might strike me one day, but the thought doesn't bother me. It hasn't turned on me yet. 

What about you, unidentified reader, how do you feel about storms? Do you think about them as blessings, or do you see them as inconveniences? Are they things to marvel at from safety, or things to experience firsthand, close up, from within?

Go mbeannaí Dia duit,
M.S.

From the Storm

I love a good storm. There's just something about the wind, the rain, the lightning that just sparks the imagination and calls to one's soul. Something peaceful is to be found in the turbulent skies—it is an example of God's glorious majesty. Storms are better than foggy mornings, better than sunny days… well, maybe not better, but they're at least equal to them.

If anyone ever needed proof that I'm crazy, I like to walk the streets barefoot with neither coat nor umbrella. I never worry about lightning, I never worry about catching pneumonia; at least, not until after the fact. (Slippery little guy, pneumonia, my child self could never find where he was hiding.) If I lived in the world of Final Fantasy X, I'd probably make my home near the Thunder Plains, if not on them.

What about power outages? Eh. I've never really minded being without electricity. Sure, I'm without computer and internets, but I think that makes me more productive. Besides, candlelight is awesome.

Even if you dislike storms, remember: farmers need the rain.

Do you like or dislike storms? Why? What's your favorite weather? Why?

Go mbeannaí Dia duit,

M. S.