The Calm Before The Storm

After M and G left the breakfast table this morning, I lingered for a while, watching the trees in the back yard.  The sun never quite made it out of bed today, but the birds seem very happy and everything is peaceful.  We are under a tornado watch, and the radar shows red all over the place.  I know that soon, the trees will be swaying and it will be pouring rain, probably even thundering and flashing lightning.

I wonder how scared Chip will be when it really starts storming.  I wonder if any of our trees will fall over (it's happened before!).  But I am also excited, because it's Saturday and we don't have anywhere else to be.  We can enjoy the excitement, and we really do need the rain.  Besides, rain at the end of January means that it's pretty warm out there, and we are lucky for that.

I realized, staring out at the woods, that I feel kind of the same way about the baby.  My energy level and appetite have both dropped drastically in the past few days, and I know that my body is preparing to go through a pretty intense but brief "storm."  I'll have many of the same questions as I do today:  will G do well with the changes?  will my body stand up to the challenge?  will things ever quiet down again?

It's funny how before it storms, all you think about is the storm.  During the storm, all you think about is the storm.  But it always does quiet down, doesn't it?  And because of the rain, we get blooming trees, healthy soil, happy birds and squirrels, and once in a while we even get a rainbow.  And really, the calm before the storm doesn't have to be ominous; it can be a time to appreciate the moment.