I’ve been to North Carolina the last two weekends. It’s not something I really “planned” to do. When you are tired, there are times when you make yourself pack a car and leave. This Friday I was watching the weather report and realized we were going to have rain on and off for the next couple of days. “Perfect,” I thought.

I love the mountains when it’s raining. I love being in a dense forest and breathing in the fragrance of the Balsam trees as the wind whips through them. And I love to photograph an approaching storm. We watched several come and go, and each time I confess I felt exhilarated.

Atlanta friends will remember one of my favorite quotes is from F. B. Meyer: “A storm is only as the outskirts of God’s robe, the symptom of His advent, the environment of His presence. Dare to trust Him; dare to follow Him! And discover that the very forces which barred your progress and threatened your life, at His bidding become the materials of which an avenue is made at liberty.”

Grab a cup of coffee and head out to the porch. Right! That is what I was trying to do. Several people were there already and when I went through the door, one lady said, “Oh, we’re watching lightening strike the valley below us.” I looked up just in time to see a bolt race earthward. Magnificent!