I'm not superstitious and I certainly have tried not to buy into fear, but let me tell you about my Friday the 13th. We had a thunderstorm on and off for 24 hours. Storms thrill me and I worked my lunch shift eager to get home and enjoy the storm. By the time I made it home, the storm was at its peak and my cousin, Tim and I, exchanged shocked screams as every bolt came a little closer.

We knew something big was coming when our whole house lit up a bright fuchsia. Immediately after was one of the largest rolls of thunder I can recall ever experiencing. I looked over at my car in the driveway just in time to see another lightning bolt heading straight for it. I began to regret the salt I spilled at work. We went out to survey the damage and I see my car's antenna, split and fried. All I could do was laugh and hope it would start in the morning.

Our house on Lopez, has a bomb shelter, evidently those used to be necessary. I tried to convince Tim to go hide in there with me, but he was too immersed in his video game. So I decided to bake. And right as I was sticking my toffee bars into the oven, our power went out. as did our water. and our internet. and our sewer system.

And so there we are, sitting in darkness, scrambling for a lighter and accidentally almost burning some of my grandma's collector candles. As we sat in the candlelight, we tried to think of what to do. With every failed attempt to entertain ourselves, we ended up laying in the sun-room, watching the lightning illuminate the sky. And I realized that this was the first time in a long time that I had allowed myself to be surrounded by complete silence. Sometimes, I think the Lord will go to great measures simply to bring us to that place. 


The good news: our power and water eventually came back on, as did our septic tank, however our router is still down. I'm sitting on the lawn at the library, soaking up some sun and much needed social media. But I think I've enjoyed the simplicity of life without it for a few days. It's forced me to pick up a book I've wanted to read for awhile called "Love Does". It's written by a man named Bob Goff who shares my love of Uganda and all things whimsical. The book surrounds the idea of love as an action. It's blowing my mind and if you have never read it, I will gladly share my copy with you. That is, if you don't mind my constant underlining and scribbling that takes place when my heart resonates with every sentence that he writes. 

I learned that when you spill salt, you should throw it over your left shoulder with whatever hand you write with. Believe it or not, you will find that in my recent google searches. But beyond hoping you never spill salt, I hope one day the thunder comes and you lose everything just long enough to realize the power of your Creator.