33 – Storms *

Special thanks to Margaret for being my collaborator for this post. Margaret, from Yorkshire, UK, hosts From Pyrenees to Pennines, an eclectic blog focusing on life, travel, and photography. I didn’t know Margaret from the old blog, but she’s been a regular visitor here since I started Beach Walk Reflections. She’s welcoming and with a sense of humor, so I encourage you to stop by her blog – and tell her I sent you.

Click the video above for 2 minutes of background waves while reading.

I like walking on the beach. It’s good for the mind, body, and soul – and refreshing on my feet.

Even though a storm is approaching, the sky can still be blue – but the sea may be agitated.

Today is not one of those days. In advance of a storm front due to pass in mid-afternoon, clouds dominate the sky. They are not a solid mass – but very irregular showing a seemingly unlimited spectrum of gray. The clouds saturate the sky as ritual smoke as they move to their cosmic dance.

Scant patches of blue periodically appear as holes leading to a greater beyond. Sometimes, an opening aligns with the sun to shine light on me. Other times the sun transforms a puffy cloud into a brilliant white aerial statue.

The wind is stronger today as it assists me in my eastward walk – but I know it will provide resistance on my return trip.

The winds travel across the water’s surface creating ripples for as far as I can see. I look at the thick clouds above whose lower surfaces appear as ripples caused by the same wind. There must be a connection.

The sea is more agitated than yesterday’s placidness. Red flags at beach entrances warn visitors of riptide currents, yet the sea is far from the fury whose tempest took ships to their unexpected but permanent mooring on the ocean floor.

The storm is not yet here – and may or may not live up to forecasted expectations. The clouds serve as a blanket of anticipation – but not a positive one because they display a haunting gloom of the approaching afternoon worry.

Storms make people anxious – just as the difficulties, trials, and tribulations do in life. Personal storms tend to weaken fragile foundations, but those with a strong cornerstone survive and come forth with strength and wisdom.

It’s also interesting how storms are symbolic in life. After letting the storm build in them, a person is storming mad, so they storm into a room to take a meeting by storm – storm around kicking up a storm, then storm out. All this is very different from dancing or singing up a storm.

We also know that when a storm is brewing – even in a teapot – but any port in a storm may be necessary for safely riding out the storm.

But the storm approaching the area is about the weather – not personalities. The approaching storm is not a hurricane – after all, it is not hurricane season. I have never been in or near a hurricane, but that’s not an experience that I want to add to my resume of life experiences.

The approaching storm may not be a hurricane, but it may have an eye – but in the form of tornadoes. Those sudden bursts of energy are angry eyes of destruction that nobody wants to see.

The approaching storm makes me wonder about not only its turmoil but the calm on the other side – even the possibility of a rainbow.

For now, I don’t worry. I enjoy this time and walking on the beach because it is good for the mind, body, and soul – and refreshing on my feet.

See what other bloggers have posted about storms

• Lightning Storm (essay and photos)
• A Tropic Storm in the North Georgia Mountains (essay and pictures)
• Yesterday’s Storms (poem)
• Ice Storm (photo-based essay)
• The Storm Poem

Next Post: Rainbows – Thursday 26 January @ 1 AM (Eastern US)

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