Tuesday, May 27, 2008

Namaste

I love thunderstorms. Always have. I remember, growing up (not that I'm finished with that, by the way), jumping on the trampoline during storms (probably not the smartest place to be when lightening abounds), or watching the lightening from the shelter of the back porch (after my mom noticed I was out in the middle of the yard, surrounded by metal). For me, there is something so peaceful and awe-inspiring about a thunderstorm. It "fills up my senses" if you will (Honestly, can anyone think of a better way of saying it? John Denver hit the nail on the head with that one). Like the forest, the mountains, the ocean...it inspires me. I don't know how to describe it in words. And then there's the after-math: the sudden up-let of pouring rain, the gradual increase in time between drops heard from dripping downspouts, the smell of what I'm sure mansion owners in Heaven use in their wallflowers scent diffusers, and the "calm after the storm." It's like the best, most healing cleansing breath after some sort of cosmic yoga session.
Luckily Ty enjoys thunderstorms almost as much as I, and we hurried to set up our lawn chairs in the open garage during a recent storm to watch our children dance in, squeal over, and taste the falling wetness. Sadly enough, my favorite photos turned out all fuzzy, but here are others:



Sylas was less interested in rain-dancing, and went straight for the puddle under the gutter spout, armed with more rocks than I knew existed in that vicinity. Come to find out this is NOT one of the things I like about rain (you should have seen his mud-caked shoes and shorts), but he sure does!

6 comments:

Christy said...

That's exactly how I feel after a rain storm too! Love the rain and the smell and everything that it makes you feel! However, I am the meanest mom and wouldn't let my kids go out in it today...they have had colds...

Sharlee said...

I love thunderstorms too, but would never be able to put it into words like you did. They are so romantic and cozy. (That's the extent of my descriptive language skills). How fun that your kids got to enjoy the storm and that you were a smart mom and took pictures!

Amber said...

So I read this post as I was downloading pics from our thunderstorm watching adventure this afternoon!!! I was going to post them and now I will feel like a copycat. Aw, who cares. I'm a follower. It's what I do. Also in regards to your comment about my last post this is what I said, "Oh Andrea! How I love your perspective on things. I totally interpreted the quote in a different way. Perhaps it was my state of mind, but I took it to mean she was creating a playground of the imagination in her mind to get through the madness of child-rearing. For instance, I might be in the middle of yet another Princess tea party, but my mind has me on a remote beach on some tropical island where there is always ample time to shower and dishes wash themselves. I totally get the quote from your perspective and if you look at it like that, I would have to agree with you!"

Mattie Rae said...

All rain should come in the form of a thunderstorm. It's not that way in Washington at all where it it just spittles constantly on you from a grey, gloomy sky. I now have more appreciation for a good thunderstorm and am sooo glad I live in Utah where summer thunderstorms abound!

Rindee said...

Ha. Mattie Rae beat me to it. I always felt like the sky in Washington was always pouting or whining, and that's how life felt there. Then I spent a summer in Utah, and the summer rains were so different from what I was used to, I did what your kids did...I went outside and played in the street (at age 16. Someone took pictures of me...I'll have to find them). I loved how it was hot and dry, the big clouds rolled in with a purpose. They poured and the sky had fireworks to accent the emotion and when it was done it was over. The sun came out, the air was cooler, and everything was clean.
The pictures of your kids reminded me of some pictures we have of us kids playing in a rainstorm when we lived in Payette. I remember sitting on our porch at other times watching the lightning and counting the seconds until I could hear the thunder.

Palmer family said...

I LOVE rainstorms too! I always have. It has been raining oodles here and everyone is commenting on how it is depressing and I think it is REFRESHING! Fun pictures. About your soccer pictures...I CAN RELATE! I was busting up at your details...getting the kids ready to go, yelling to get in the van, younger kids playing during games so you couldn't watch, etc. That was me to a "T"! Travis would meet me at the field (that was about 15 mins. from home) and I was ready to just run away by that time. I didn't want to deal with anything else. It stretched my to my limit almost every game day! Job well done though, We survived! :) Yippie. I am still debating on Fall soccer. I have 3 more weeks to decide. UGH. Did you already sign up?
So, what is your plan for June and our get together?