Oh Happy Day

Let me tell you about the storm last night! The lightening was horrific--no, not quite, it was strickingly beautiful. The storm caused me some minutes of concern as the rain, hail and wind ripped at my car. The sound upon the roof top was l o u d like some irate thing banging and demanding entrance. As I passed under a viaduct, the silence was deafening like a movie with the sound turned off. I thought about pulling over and sitting there until the storm passed but I could not afford to stop (remember can't means I choose not to) and pressed on. I got home without incident and continued to gawk at the storm from the window. I have always been fascinated by storms, especially lightening--horizontal, vertical, near, distant, radiating. I learned from mama that when the rain fell while the sun shone that the devil was whipping his wife and that if I gazed in, I don't remember which direction, I would perhaps see a rainbow. I still believe in rainbow's promises. One Sunday some years ago, I sat in the Indianapolis airport. My Southwest flight had not arrived because of bad weather. The clouds were thick and dark. As much as I desired to get on board and home to Kansas City, there was something quiet and peaceful about the storm that said this is one of those special moments-- a moment to relax that I might not take otherwise. When the plane arrived and we boarded, I wondered about the safety of taking off in such grayness, such thickness of clouds. Then the plane began to race down the runway and swiftly lifted up, up, up. Suddenly, to my surprise we were above the clouds and it was golden--pure gold--the sun setting and casting richness, unspeakable richness everywhere! I could only think about "streets of gold" somewhere, off I hope in my future.