Headed Into the Storm

I-80 West, mile marker 182, Grinnell, Iowa 6-28-15

Huge, billowing white clouds behind us.

Sun, rain, and dark clouds in front of us.

Caught between two beautiful pictures, but positioned to head right into the storm.

On our last of three trips back and forth to Grinnell, Iowa during the last weekend of June, we settled in for our ride home, only to be met with this scene as we merged onto the interstate. We had just finished a fun but exhausting weekend of swim competitions for our daughters and some of their teammates.

The looming clouds ahead, although beautiful, were also a sign of uncertainty.

How big was the storm?

Would we have to stop because of the rain?

Would we be able to still see the road?

Would other vehicles be able to see us?

As educators, we often see signs of an upcoming storm.......a student that is upset, an unexpected change of the day's plan or schedule, technology that stops working, a conversation that is overdue.....

How you do handle these storms?  Head on, full speed ahead? Gently, with caution? The way we respond to storms often determines the outcome, or "storm damage" as well as the way we handle the next storm. You don't want to be caught in a storm without an umbrella, or drown in the rain, but you also don't need to shy away from every raindrop.

As I start thinking about next year, I know there will be storms some days. But having a positive outlook and dealing gently with the signs of those upcoming storms will help me weather all kinds of situations.

Storms don't last forever, thank goodness! And the storm we drove through didn't either.

We made it through the storm fairly quickly, with sunny skies and fairly dry roads on the other side. 

What seemed to be a potentially stormy road trip didn't turn out too bad, and we enjoyed the rest of the ride home together.