We had our first thunderstorm of the year night before last. Just some rumblings in the distance and flashes of lightening on the horizon. Rather than being scary, like it was when I was a kid, I found it rather reassuring. If it had been daylight, we might have seen a rainbow and remembered God’s promise of Genesis 8:22 “While the earth remaineth, seedtime and harvest, and cold and heat, and summer and winter, and day and night shall not cease.” So it was kind of nice to doze off to the sounds of faraway thunder.

Late yesterday afternoon, we had another one roll through and drop some hail on us. I was in the barn when it hit. We saw the storm coming and were going to try and get the horses in out of it, but it started too quickly. After the downpour and hail started they just turned their rumps to the wind and stood there, ignoring my calls to them to come in. They even looked at me as if to say, “Why don’t you get yourself in out of the rain? You’re going to get soaked.” So I just waited it out in the barn. There’s something mysteriously good about watching a rainstorm through the half door of a barn. The rain looks wetter if you aren’t looking at it through a glass window. The wind howls a little louder through a haymow than it does around the eaves of house. The thunder cracks a little louder when there is no fiberglass insulation to slow it down and the lightening seems brighter, closer and flashier somehow. And you can watch it all while staying dry and warm. You can experience it without actually having to get out there in it and get soaked.

My son, Jack (25) has the day off today after his class, so he is cooking supper tonight. He’s making enchiladas, frijoles, guacamole & Spanish Rice. He’s a pretty good cook. Several weeks ago he made us a Cajun meal of blackened redfish (good), jambalaya (good) & crawdads (gross).

It’s been a beautiful, sunny day today. Warm enough to shed the Cowgirl Up sweatshirt which I put on last September and have pretty much worn day in and day out since then, with brief pauses for laundering, of course. I am so cold-blooded. My friends just roll their eyes at me when I say, “It’s chilly in here.” And then they proceed to describe their latest menopausal hot flash to me while I continue to shiver, shove my hands into the front pocket, and put up the hood. Then they end their monologue with, “Just wait ‘til you start getting them.” What can I say? I’m kind of looking forward to it.