August 23, 2013

WATCHING STORMS



Maybe its because I'm from Oklahoma, but whenever I hear a deep rumble of thunder or see the skies start to turn, instead of making sure I stay somewhere safe and dry, I'm compelled to rush outside and watch.

Watching storms roll in is one of my favorite things to do at the cabin – it might even be tied with watching the sun set, and only narrowly beats out searching for constellations while sitting around around a bonfire.

After Micah and I returned from picking wild blueberries, we decided to reward our hard work with happy hour on the dock. It was overcast and breezy, and we could dip our toes in the water to stay cool. Soon, the wind picked up from the west, and the horizon started to darken. We decided to prolong our happy hour and "watch the show." The water turned brown, then green, then grey-blue. I knew it was going to be good when a freighter parked itself at the mouth of the bay, because it meant the storm was rough enough out on the "big lake" to merit waiting it out. Soon a giant wall cloud had enveloped the beach, and we could see the rain moving toward us across the bay. The wind was still rising, and it was dark enough to need to turn lights on in the cabin. We pulled up the kayaks and beach chairs, and waited as long as we dared before retreating into the cabin, to watch the finale.