As I was driving home last week from Lathrop to Rancho Cordova I drove through a huge storm.
When I left Lathrop, which is just south of Stockton, the sun was shining and I thought to myself that I was surprised that it hadn't rained yet. I talked to my dad as I left and he said that if I was planning on taking highway 99 that I would be going through a bad rain storm, that it was red on doplar radar which he hadn't seen for a long time. Being a daughter, I thought, "Oh dad, stop being so dramatic!" and I said something like, "I'm SURE I'll be fine, I drive everywhere." As usual, he was right.
As I entered Galt rain was pouring so hard that I couldn't see through the windshield and I had a little moment of panic and mentally had to be strong so I could make it home safely. Just when I thought it was clearing up, I would come upon a huge big rig that would make it so I could barley see where I was.
When I got home the sun was shining. I could see the dark cloud of rain that I had just driven through. Dark, menacing, hovering ever so close. But I was in the sun again, thankfully.
So, I started thinking about the doplar radar. The thing we see on the news to tell us a storm is coming, or here, and the severity of it. I began to think about how that applies to life.
Have you ever wondered why bad things happen to good people? I do, because I know a lot of good people who go through some tough life changes. Some handle it well, and some not so much. I began to realize that life's challenges are like storms that come through our lives. Sometimes they are just clouds that pass over and wouldn't even show up on the doplar radar.
But some, some are the red storms that pass over and pound us down to the ground, to the point that all you can do is stay inside and hunker down in bed (or on the side on the road), waiting for it to pass by.
Sometimes we wonder if it will ever end, because sometimes it feels like one continuous storm that just keeps coming and coming. It would be nice if we had doplar radar for humans. "Jenny, an orange storm is heading your way...prepare!!" or "Today will be sprinkled with little showers, but it will be an overall nice day."
So, I started to think, well, we can't control life's storms because we are all going to have them. What I thought was, I get to choose where I live so I can handle them better, and hopefully have less of them.
Some places on earth or going to have more storms than others and I get to choose where I live mentally!! Do I want to live in a mental Hawaii or Alaska? A warm location that has occasional storms, but is overall paradise. Or Alaska where most days are pretty brutal, cold, and a bear might be waiting for me.
I choose Hawaii! I can choose the way I feel every day and how I surround myself with great people and self care. I want to live in a warm location with people saying Mahalo to me all day long.
This much is true, the storms will pass, we can pick up the pieces and move forward. Life is waiting and the sun is shining somewhere.
