Remember when you were a kid and the thunder storms came and you ran into your folks' room and asked if you could sleep with them?
If that were to happen too frequently with our kids, we'd never sleep.
Thunder is almost a daily occurrance during the rainy season. We live in a valley where the clouds gather and that atmosphere acts in such a way that thunder and lightning are common occurrances. The aviation guys could explain why and how it happens much better than I can.
What I know is that at one moment I'm sweating from the sun, and the next I'm drenched from a sudden downpour.
Add to this, that the roof is made of metal, and when it pours, it makes so much noise you can't hear people in the same room as you without shouting. As people walk about your house it is as if you are watching a pantomime.
'Oh look, there's my daughter, I wonder what she's saying... she's motioning to me.... oh she looks scared... I'll comfort her with a hug, because she won't be able to hear my voice unless I shout which won't help the calming process.'
Our kids have always been good at not being scared at night. They both slept with the lights out since I can remember, and I can't recall a single time when they were scared and had to sleep in bed with us. This is a good thing because here, an average rain/thunder/lightning storm is worse than the worst one I can remember as a kid.
The thunder shakes the house, the lightning, if it strikes nearby, can fry electronic equipment over the phone lines.
And so what do we do?
Well, the kids go to sleep, and then my wife and I open the curtains, and sit down in front of our largest window, and watch the night sky. We watch the palms sway in the rain and sometimes wind. We watch the silhouettes of the night leap out as the lightning strikes, and then we count the seconds until the roaring thunder.
It's energizing, it's interesting, and it's part of living here. I am thankful to God that our kids aren't skittish. He knew, and He prepared them.
