May 17, 2007
You've probably noticed them lately. Cumulus clouds. They are the ones that we sometime refer to in Texas as "fair weather clouds," the ones that are white and puffy and that oftentimes decorate our crystal blue skies. They are the ones that your children look at and see castles or horses or "the place where God lives." They are beautiful and they are fascinating to watch.
Cumulus clouds are also weather-makers. This time of the year we will often get what pilots call "cumulus build-up" and you can see the cumulus clouds growing tall and large and dark. They become "cumulonimbus" clouds because they have moisture in them, and sometimes the tops of these clouds reach several miles. These are the clouds that produce thunderstorms with lightning and hail, and sometimes they will spin out a tornado. The strong ones will often take on an anvil-like appearance, flattening out in the direction of the strong winds at the top.
It seems to me that this points to one of the rhythms of nature: what starts off as a great day builds in the afternoon into threatening weather; ironically, our fair weather clouds lead to our most dangerous storm clouds. In the same way some of the most joyous things in life oftentimes bring us the most pain: money, marriage, children, jobs. What oftentimes starts off with great promise sometimes builds into the tumultuousness of fractured relationships and a turbulent environment.
The good news is that, as we say in Texas, the weather always changes. If you can survive the current storm, the winds will die and the sun will shine again. If you can hold onto your faith and keep working at it, there is nothing lovelier than the beauty and peace that follows the storm.
