The little boy was seven years old and farther away from his home than he should have been that afternoon, exploring the remote ends of the park. Sensing a deep feeling of trepidation due to the ambitious trek, he turned back, headed for home.
As he walked he noticed the air rapidly changing around him, and with the winds increasing, the thunder clouds started to mightily roll in. Sensing the danger, he started to run. By the time he passed the amphitheater, the lightning was crackling directly above his head. Not knowing the danger of his path, he ran, now in full sprint, directly across the top of a large grassy hill. The little boy cried out loud with a child-like repentance, as a deafening and dangerously close lightning strike cracked and exploded directly behind him; rain pouring down so hard he could barely see. He feared he might die.
Just moments later, as he crossed the little creek, the powerful storm calmed. Slowing to a confident walk once again with his composure regained, he thought to himself, ”I’m fine”.
Around the corner, the boy’s father drove toward him, happy to have found his son safe and sound.
The experience remained only as a vivid memory until now, as I share
'The Storm'.
