Don't Look Down, Look Up

 I went for a walk today--that was my intention anyway. I have a lot on my mind, a lot to process. The thunderstorms from this morning had finally abated, and it looked like I had over an hour to go outside until the next set of storms came through. My walk wouldn't take that long, so I grabbed my music and set off.


The sunlight was peeking through clouds, and I could see blue skies, this was going to be perfect. One of my favorite things about storms--aside from the obvious rain--is seeing how vibrant everything looks afterwards. The browns are browner, and the greens are greener; it's beautiful. What better place to walk than in the woods where I could be alone with my thoughts and nature? I walk a little ways and see this huge puddle in the road. As I approached, I was mesmerized watching the world around me in its mirror. I didn't see the mud, and the yard waste that was lying in its depths. I saw a reflection of what was above me. See, the sun was reflecting off of a nice fluffy, white cloud.

I continued on, and the music in my ear was a good measure of my feelings. I was pondering the lyrics as I enjoyed the colors and fresh smell from the rain. My thoughts asked similar questions as expressed in the song, but I didn't have time to formulate the answers in my own situation before the song changed. On came "Did You Think to Pray?" Not your typical hymn version, but an up-beat one that seems like it should have been in a Singles Ward movie or something.

By this point, I'm half-way to my intended destination ready to explore, and it has been about 5 minutes since I embarked on my walk. I look in this puddle and admire the blue sky again when this thought comes to my mind, "You need to head back." I thought, That's silly. I just left, and it's not supposed to rain for another hour. I'll be fine. There's bright blue sky ahead! I take a step, and then pause. I still felt I needed to go back, but I could see the woods. They were so close. It would just be a few minutes, at the very least; just enough time for me to take a couple of pictures. I'd even hurry to make sure I made it back well before the storms came, even though I didn't want to hurry. As I stood briefly debating with myself, I heard thunder off in the distance to my left. I looked over, and the sky was still blue. I had plenty of time. I looked at the woods again. So close. Then I looked behind me from the direction I came from.

My blue sky was no longer there. The thought came again, "You need to head back." Oh, ok. So I start jogging, and over the noise of my headphones, I hear rain falling in the distance. I take out my headphones and as I sprint back, I listen to the rain get louder. It's still not raining where I am, but I hear it approaching--it was actually very cool. As I return, I am a hundred feet away when the first few drops start to fall. Seconds later, I'm safely covered, and it is pouring. The wind was blowing, rain coming down so hard it was hard to see the houses around me. Then it starts to hail. I was thoroughly enjoying the scene from my mostly dry spot.

After a minute or so of watching in awe, I get a phone call. "I don't know if you've heard, but we're in Loudon right now, and there's a really bad storm headed your way and they have issued a tornado warning for the two counties and told everyone to take shelter." I laughed because I was standing there watching the storm, and it came on so quick and fierce that it would not surprise me if a tornado were to spawn from it.

I didn't get my walk as I hoped, nor did I get to see a tornado, but I did get a good lesson. Listen.

I usually enjoy dancing in the rain, quite literally, but today I was not in the mood to deal with cold, wet clothes. My Heavenly Father was watching out for me, and warned me to turn back.

When faced with the storms in life--even the ones you don't see coming--Heavenly Father is aware of you, and is watching your back. Look up for help, and listen.