Mother Nature Wants Me To Grin and BARE It all

Mother Nature and I have a curious bond as far as relationships are concerned. It is not exactly a love-hate quarrel fest nor a May-December romance. We coexist, and there are moments when I love her to the depths of my soul and others when I curse her very being.

Who can blame me? After all, I fail to believe that God, like Thor, singled out our home with a mighty strike of a lightning bolt. No, Mother Nature with an unparalleled wrath brought our home down in one brief second of power. Nature is a remarkable force that we as humans try to predict and understand. We devote entire television channels to weather and people earn their livings by explaining to the masses exactly what forces in the atmosphere will either elevate or destroy their day. Yet, weather and nature still can be as unpredictable as a strike of lightning.

Spring storms arrive, leaving me tense and unsure. The sound of thunder and the flash of lightening bring a chill to my heart and tears to my eyes. Panic knocks at the door. Sudden winds cause anxiety and a desire to seek shelter from my own home. Empathy abounds for all of those who recently suffered losses from tornadoes. I feel their pain in the marrow of my bones and weep for their tragic and sudden change of life. It does make you change - perhaps for the better, but who is to know? A lifetime erased in a flash, but still living.

Knowing that the rains will fall and the storms will pass is common sense.  Storms move on and do not always leave a path of destruction in their wake. Yet, in a moment of irrational thought, it seems that every storm is putting us in imminent danger. My heart aches for simply a beautiful shower followed by a joyous rainbow.  It can truly be the calm that we face after a storm, and we marvel at its beauty.

To counter the wrath of storms there are days when I stand in awe at the beauty in nature that surrounds me. The past three days  have been spent in our yard, preparing for the beautiful spring bouquet that will arrive. The feel of dirt beneath my fingernails and the ache of my arms and back are the reminders of spending a few days among the trees and flowers.

We trimmed, clipped, replanted, divided and removed. There are flowers on the verge of bloom and buds in every tree. The bushes, neglected for two years, have now been given shape and room to grow. The soil is rich and dark and ready for a long dry Summer. The plants rise from the fertile earth like a phoenix from the ashes. There is life awaiting. They share the rain, each and every one, without regard to it's function or beauty. The weeds and the flowers must slake their thirst along with the grass and trees. Each to their own to grow and strengthen until they reach their potential and kiss the sky.

As the plants bring new Spring life to my world, I recognize that I, too can rise like a Phoenix above the shattered past. Life can bring us many tragedies. There are so many who suffer and cannot rise. We can all be a source of strength to those around us who have lost their own. Help others bloom and we bloom ourselves.

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A post note about the pictures: Yes, the first picture is our home. It was taken by a neighbor and posted on-line. Think what you will of this digital age. The news hit the internet long before the fire department arrived. The second picture is also our home. It was taken by a different neighbor about two weeks after the fire. The contrast between what was left of our roof and the rainbow is hard to grasp for me. Her children spotted the rainbow over our home and insisted that she get her camera and take pictures to send to us. The last few pictures are from our yard. I can't wait til everything blooms!