A Stroke of Awesome

So, first off, my apologies for my prolonged absence. I imagine I've likely lost all of my already limited readership. Perhaps my kind sister still checks back on occasion to see whether I've written anything new, but I can't expect the rest of you to have maintained interest. So, I thought, hey, why not come back to the blog with something loud, exciting, and wicked... bound to capture the interest of all! (Or just you, Shelly). What could be so awesome that it gets you as excited as an explosion in the first 30 seconds of a movie (or better yet, an explosion during the opening credits? thanks,Team America). You guessed it: A Thunderstorm!

(Props to my Mom for this wicked pic!)

Ok, maybe you didn't guess it, but thunderstorms are freaking awesome. I'd have sworn there, but there might be kids reading this. How they ever found this blog, I'll never know. But, its the internet, where children know far more than their parents. Seriously, as an aside, if I were a parent, I'd be TERRIFIED of the internet (and yet simultaneously enthralled! So much useful parenting and child development information!)

Right. Thunderstorms. So, I was never a kid who was afraid of thunderstorms, really. This was largely because my parents intentionally made a storm into an exciting and fun event. When we were kids, if there was a storm, especially at the cottage, they'd wake us up, and we'd all go into the veranda and watch the lightning and jump at the thunder, but feel enthralled by the entire thing.

Thunderstorms have never really lost their magic for me. Its been something that's endured. The majesty of nature is bewildering at times, and I've felt humbled to bear witness. Last month, my best friend Lily came up to my cottage for an awesome weekend with some family members and friends. On Saturday night, we got treated to an amazing show. After dinner and dishes were done, we retired to the dock as we typically do, in order to watch the sunset.

Well, that Saturday night, there was no sunset, per se. The lake was placid and calm, but we could hear a storm brewing around the bay. There was no rain or wind, but thunder would rumble around us like we were in the middle of a Tibetan singing bowl that had a very low voice. Then the lightning started. The lightning was intense and exciting, but well across the lake. We sat at the end of the dock watching this storm for a good 45 minutes until finally Mom had the common sense to inform us that the storm was about to hit, and we shouldn't be on the end of the dock inviting a lightning strike. She was right. We retired to the cottage, and two minutes later the storm hit us. We turned off all the lights and sat in the dark listening to the storm and Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon. If you're ever wondering what is the appropriate music during a thunder or lightning storm, that would be it.

Once, a few years ago, my Dad and I were hanging out playing some cribbage, and a crazy lightning storm started. We quickly flipped off all the lights and power except for our stereo which had just started playing Dark Side of the Moon. Over the next 45 minutes, the lightning storm was exactly in time to the album. It had the same breath, the same spaces, multiple flashes and action at the same time as the beats. It was us, Pink Floyd, and God, and it was amazing.

So, to all you parents out there, don't let your kids be afraid of a storm, instead, help them get excited about it. You'll be doing them a favour for a lifetime. And guess what? They're calling for a thunderstorm tomorrow! Keep your fingers crossed!