Comfort in the Storm

I enjoy a good rainstorm, especially at night. The pattering of rain on the tin roof is relaxing to me, lulls me to sleep. Meriel, on the other hand, is afraid of rain. More precisely, she is afraid of what rain usually brings. Last week, it started to rain in the middle of the night. Before I even heard the rain, I heard shrieks coming from the girls' bedroom. When I ran in there and asked Meriel what was wrong, she said, "It's raining." And then, "I'm scared that it might thunder." I tried to get her to calm down and not worry about something that might happen in the future. She settled down a bit, so I went back to bed. Then, a peal of thunder crashed. Howling, Meriel hurried into our room, arms full of stuffed animals and blankets. That was the only thunder we heard for the night, but it was enough to validate Meriel's fears.

As I lay in bed trying to get back to sleep, I thought about how I often worry about what might happen in the future. It's really just as ridiculous as Meriel being afraid of rain. "Do not worry about tomorrow for tomorrow will worry about itself!"

At supper one evening, we were talking about the weather. I mentioned that it is almost always cool in Oregon. Philip countered with, "But it rains a lot." I could see the concern on Meriel's face with the mention of rain, so I added that it usually doesn't thunder. Her face brightened, "I would play outside in the rain all the time!" I informed her that it is often cold when it rains, and she laughed. The idea of cold rain without thunder is such a foreign concept to her.

Last night, we did have a real thunderstorm. Lightening flashed right side our window, thunder shuddering the house at the same instant. Meriel pressed up right against my side, Simeon sandwiched between us. The power of the storm was impressive. Waves of rain blew against the house. I enjoyed the coolness the rain brought, the refreshing breeze of the storm. My children won't always need my comforting arms around them, so I just cherished the moment. Eventually, the storm blew past, and we all drifted into a restful sleep. I pray that my children will always let God restore peace in their hearts and lives in such a manner.