Dancing Between the Raindrops

I decided that I had to carry out the garbage in a deluge tonight. Why I thought it could not wait until my husband came home or till when there was less water, I don’t know but I knew I had to carry it out so I did. I had been as mean and as stern with my children as I could have been as I ordered everyone to go to bed so as to rush out on my ridiculous task ignoring the hints their worried bedtime prayers spoke out loud, I was too focused on my mission.

When I opened the front door, the downpour roared right up to my face daring me to step out flashing its promise of deceptive luminance in brilliant waves of forbidding sheet lightening. So ignoring my inner alarm of the marauding elements, I ducked my head down and made a run for it. But then a funny thing happened.

I glided outside almost as if I was moving between tears. At first while I dropped my recycling tins in the bin I thought… for real the reflection of these cans shall surely cause me to get stuck by lightening… but it didn’t. Then I became energized. I ran with the first bin to the gate not feeling the rain and the cold as it emptied down from the skies on my head, I felt curiously free and almost as if I danced. By the time I got to the second bin I had hit a rhythm, I grabbed it from the side of the house, hoisted it over the car as if dancing with the stars bound, launching my partner to the sidewalk with pure unfettered athleticism even pausing to check that it and all its contents remained intact as any good waltz partner would. For my final flourish, I jumped in full out split mode, toes pointed on my rubber boot clad feet, spread eagle to back to the front door and safety. The dance was done, mission completed.

Back inside, I walked happily back up the stairs to the quiet of a sleeping household proud of my accomplishment. Then two little voices called out “Mummy are you safe, we were praying for you.” I was struck right then. The lightening came to me in the form of the insight that:- as I looked down on my jeans in awe at the fact that all but the hem of the pants remained dry as a bone:- what kept me safe outside was not my own courage but two children’s innocent forgiving hearts and a loving God who allowed a mother who had misplaced her priorities in urgency, the chance to come back and hug her children, again. Awesome!

Dance then wherever you may be,
I am the Lord of the Dance said he,
and I’ll lead you all wherever you may be,
and I’ll lead you all in the dance said he.


Selah.