Storms

        Nature creates many varieties of weather. Storms can be mild or ferocious. Almost always a storm announces itself with sound and sights for the eye. Sometimes the sound can be overwhelming with its thunder and lightning and the darkening of clouds. It is a warning of what is to come, a chance to take shelter and prepare.

        Life is full of storms. As in nature they are sometimes mild and sometimes ferocious. Unlike nature's storms, they can come without warning. A death, an accident, an illness, a loss of some other nature. There is a change, a break in the normal. There may be a short stormy period or it can seem to go on and on and on. Again, unlike nature, we cannot just take shelter and get out of storm's way. We often feel as if we are in the middle of the storm. We may have been drawn in by circumstances that involve those around us or we may be fighting a long battle of one type or another. We feel buffeted by the strain and strength of these storms. We look for shelter and some find it in negative ways that encourage habits that are hard to break and can bring bigger storms. During the storms of life we seldom see light. It all seems to be dark and foreboding, a depressing time with little joy. No one is outside of the storms of life, but some seem to weather it better than others.

        We cannot always find strength, we cannot always find faith in times of deep distress. It becomes a matter of survival, of trying to maintain, of continuing when we want to quit. How then do we weather these storms? How do we prepare? The body does its part in deep stressful situations of putting us in a somewhat shocked state. It is a protective thing to keep balance. Of course if we are too much in shock that is not good, but initially, it is a defense. Look at those around you for help. Seek help from those who can help you. If you are the caregiver, if it is your role to be the strength for others, then you have a double load. In the midst of the giving, of the experiencing, of the surviving, try to find a moment by moment tiny bit of peace within. It may not be there, it may be buried deep, but in looking you will find a subtle shift of being. Momentarily, there will be a release, a mental quietness and sometimes, with just a moment, the spirit within can cushion the hurt and the trauma. Then you 'will' to continue. Even though you may think you cannot do so, you try and try again. With each moment, there is a little shelter. As the moments build the time will take you through the storm. Remember, no matter how long the storm, there is Light.