Ate breakfast in the swing this morning watching the fighting finches and the faithful cardinals. The most beautiful dove has been in my yard today. Her gray coloring matches the clouds in the sky. She’s an Eurasian dove, has a black kerchief band around her neck, dressed in a feather color chart of light grays and warm browns. I’ve been watching her jump around under the feeders, her head bobbing with every step.

The winds and far away thunder don’t seem to disturb the birds. I’ve seen downy woodpeckers, wood thrush, humming birds, cardinals, wrens, and a few titmice and some chickadees. More birds today than the last few days. I’ve been thinking maybe the heat is keeping the birds in the shade of the brush around the oak tree the last few days.

Loud thunder drove Penelope and me in the house around lunch. I lay my head down for a minute on my bed and went to sleep. Rare for me to take a nap. A torrential rainstorm woke me up later. I got up and sat in my reading chair and watched the rain pouring straight down. No wind. Didn’t even wet the swing cushions.

When the rain stopped the sun took command of the sky. Bright and clear. Never thought about the rain clearing dust particles and pollutants from the air that block sunlight. Moisture in the air enables sunlight to scatter more, so the sky does actually appear to be brighter. And the grass is greener from the nitrogen in the rain. I love Mother Nature! She’s a wonder. Always wondered what was the opposite of Mother Nature. Father Sky is the complement of Mother Nature. Don’t think she has an opposite.

Mother Nature is working up another storm here now. She’s got the bamboo dancing, bending and twisting to the wind, slapping against each other. I can see lightning in the distance lighting up the purple storm clouds. Sunsets have the most beautiful colors after a storm. I’m missing the wind chimes’ symphony on the porch that plays during a storm. Can’t hear it in my room with the door shut.

Sometimes on a beautiful day a storm comes out of nowhere, disrupting our day with thunder and lightning and rain. But there is always beauty in a storm. When these storms interrupt our lives the beauty is in the love and understanding we receive from our family and friends. Our lives can change in an instant. Our lives are as unpredictable as the weather. I know that personally and could not have weathered the two terrible storms of my life with our the warmth and understanding sunshine of love from my family and friends.

Storms can darken our horizon and make our days bleak. None of us wants to go through a storm but God reveals himself to us during the storms. Reaching out to God in prayer can help the storms dissipate and bring beauty back in our lives.

“When you walk through the storm, hold your head high, and don’t be afraid of the dark! At the end of the storm is a golden sky and the sweet song of the lark. Walk on through the wind. Walk on through the rain. Though your dreams be tossed and blown, walk on, walk on, with hope in your heart and you’ll never walk alone,” —Douglas Adams