July Ninth-Capture the Thought

It got dark…fast. Not night time dark, thunderstorm dark.

I heard the first rumble but wasn’t positive it was thunder, by the second long, low growl from the sky, I had no doubt. I also knew that Molly would be wanting inside immediately. Bella was already inside staring toward the offending sounds. I went out back and moved the bowl of dry cat food to a place where it would hopefully remain dry and not become cat food soup. Then I came back inside to wait.

Then it became really dark, really fast, Molly was begging to be allowed inside even as she could have simply used the oversized doggy door Bella had created. I did get up and let her in making sure that neither dog tried to take sanctuary under my desk. I know it bothers them that all of these windows are open and they can hear every sound plainly and loudly but the breeze from the storm actually feels good so I’m not closing them.

The storm actually seemed to approach in slow motion. The thunder putting me in mind of buffalo grazing, the movement of the herd a rumble across the sky. Their sheer number darkening the summer sun, bringing the heat down quicker than the storm moved. Could it have been the movement of their tails that stirred the breeze? 

Was it a gathering of dragon instead? Storming the sky, their wings stirring the winds and shattering the clouds sending their collected raindrops to the ground?

As a child, it was the lightening that frightened me. Now, after having dealt with Hurricane Hugo and seeing the aftermath, it is the winds that put me on edge. Watching the trees as they sway crazily. It isn’t unusual to hear the crashing sound of large limbs falling. I’ve found many in the yard, broken and scattered. I have found them driven deep into the ground, standing upright as if in some way honoring the tree from which they came.  I have had a limb pierce the roof of my home, going all the way through into and through the ceiling of my bedroom. A while back a tree beside the house snapped in half, the part that fell, did so across my son’s car. Thankfully the damage was not something that made it unable to be driven. It just isn’t so pretty, but it does now have character.

Our dog Molly isn’t a fan of the wind either. Bella pays it no mind as Molly stares out the door, barking as if daring the wind to come too close. Sorry Molly, there’s no stopping it from coming.

As dark as the sky had grown, and stayed, I wondered how much rain we would get from the storm. Surprisingly, not a lot. I heard it falling but looking outside, one would never believe it had rained here at all. My concern over the rain was about the kittens, but the last time I saw them they were shoving each other through the small hole in the foundation of my house.

Its Bella, that impressed me, and had me thinking and realizing something. Bella was inside, stretched out in the floor next to my chair. Bella knew she was safe. Knowing that, she saw no reason to be afraid.In fact, she slept through the entire thing.

Molly, not so much. Molly moved about the room, looking for a safe place. Molly sat and kept glancing over toward the door to where she could see outside. Molly kept looking at me as if I could do something to make it go away. Molly, was a doggy nervous wreck.

I want to be like Bella. When the storms of this life approach, no matter what they are, how bad or scary they are, I want to remember with whom I am safe. I need to remember, where my shelter is and once there, to know there is no need to fear. I want to shed all fears and concerns and rest safe in my Lord.

 Bella is getting a little age on her, she spends more time inside now. When she is inside, she is never far from where I am. She loves me, she trusts me, she wants to be near me. How great a lesson is that? That we should always seek to be near the Lord. To love and trust in Him because He loves us deeply.

 That is the thought, and the desire that I wish to capture this day.