Waiting Out the Rain

Today I am grateful for clarity that comes when least expected, for rest and a good book to pull me in, and for my running partner, my husband Darcy.

I often don't post on Saturday mornings because we are heading out for a long training run. But this was the view from our front patio just a few minutes ago:

A steady rain and some thunder and lightning have us waiting it out for awhile. I appreciate the roof over our heads and the weather radar that helps us plan our next steps. And the gift of time. We have a few things that we hope to do today, but we aren't on a tight timeline.

It was already very warm and humid before the rain, so an earlier start wouldn't have been a cooler one anyway.

Waiting out the rain. Ridin' the Storm Out to use the title of an REO Speedwagon song I loved back in the day. And it fits as I continue to ride out this early fifties, midlife angst I sometimes feel pelted by. Sometimes I pelt myself relentlessly. Sometimes life brings unexpected and unsought twists and turns. The storms of life rain down on each of us from time to time.

The good news is that storms pass. Cleaning up and drying out, clouds clear. The view becomes more vivid and colorful again. Life experience has taught me that whatever challenges come along, they will subside. We make it through, emerging wiser. 

Living gratefully, doing daily work for my daily disease of alcoholism, running, writing, family, friends, faith; these all help me wait out the rain. Or send me safely out to run in it, cleansing my mind and heart.