Weather

I got a kick out of all the comments posted on Facebook yesterday in regards to the incompetence of the weather forecasters when the snow storm forecasted arrived approximately twelve hours later than it was initially predicted to begin, and came with much less force than originally thought. People had all sorts of things to say about how ridiculous it was that school was closed and that our meteorologists get paid to be wrong, etc.. I have definitely been guilty of this same type of thinking, especially when you're looking forward to a nice warm, sunny day and it turns out to be anything but.

When my family and I were holding vigil at the hospital the week before my mother died, I ran into a woman I hadn't seen for years who now works there. She knew what was happening with Mom and she took the time to offer comfort and shared with me the story of her own mother's passing. She had passed a few years ago from cancer and it was a hard death. She told me how, like us, she sat vigil for many days wanting to make sure her mom wasn't alone when she went. One day her mother woke up and said, "Honey, you need to go home and rest.". When she tried to argue, her mother got visibly distraught and demanded, "Go home!", so reluctantly, she did. She figured she'd go home long enough to sleep for an hour or two and get freshened up before returning, but as she walked through her front door she heard the phone ringing. It was the nurse with the news that her mom had passed not long after she left. The pain she still carries with her was obvious as she told this story, and I understood it completely.

We talked for a while longer about death and how it would appear that we know when it's coming, and might actually have a hand in choosing the exact moment when it comes. At least in situations where illness is involved. Her mother's story is not unique, I've heard it (and seen it) before. Perhaps you have as well. When our conversation ended, she hugged me and said, "Well Carrie, I think there still needs to be a few mysteries left in life.".

Creation, death and Mother Nature. These are the few big mysteries that we have left. The day that man has more power than the unpredictability of nature is a day that I'm not so sure I want to see. With all of the forward motion of science and technology, we should be thankful when the weather forecasters get it wrong and let it serve as a reminder that we are still vulnerable to a power greater than ourselves.

Amen to that my friends...amen to that.

xo,
Carrie