the midst of the storm.

"I'm afraid," he confessed as Maven stood with him in the place where his quest would begin.
"Of what?" Maven asked in a calming voice.
"For this journey. Have I learned all I need to know?" Ayden queried.
"Ayden," he replied, "you know all you need to learn."
"What should I take with me?" Ayden continued.
"Leave all you have and take all you are."
Ayden persisted, "And the path, is it safe to travel?"
Maven looked at him sternly for the first time he could remember and scolded him, "It is not safe to remain! It is not the place but the Presence that upholds you! This is your only certainty. Go! Walk where no man has walked, yet you find footprints."
~Entry 707/ The Perils of Ayden

thursday evening found me driving across a couple county lines, as it normally does. but this past thursday was different. as i merged onto the highway, i could see the black clouds on the horizon, speckled with the occasional flash of lightning. the summer thunderstorms predicted were indeed on their way. and i was driving right into them.
i caught myself with a lil cheshire cat grin painted on my face. how i do enjoy a good thunderstorm! and i knew i'd have an excellent seat for this show. i rolled the windows down, had my hand out, riding the air, feeling the shift in temperature as i approached the storm.
the first few drops of cool rain felt oh so refreshing, inviting. then it came down faster, harder, with small pieces of hail stinking my skin. i smiled as i drove further....the rain was so heavy at one point you couldn't see five feet in front of you. lightning threatening to bolt down right onto the highway, feeling the ground beneath you tremble in the thunder's fury. a couple of cracks scared me, but the exhileration from being in the midst of the storm far outweighed any fear.

how fitting a picture for my life right now. i see the storm clouds looming, hearing the rumble of the thunder in the distance....yet i hesitate. i ask all the questions ayden did....have i learned all i need to know? am i really prepared for this journey?....basically just dragging my heels, while the adventure and journey beckons me still.

Creation groans for all to be set right. The earth roars in violence-disrupting what is to make room for what is to come.
Only after everything is shaken can it find its rightful place.
Its movement destroys, divides, and defines.
Even the mountains tremble.
Yet there is a kingdom that remains.
~Maven, The Perils of Ayden

perhaps it's time for all comfortable familiarity to be shaken. i'm becoming too complacent, yet my soul cries out for the edge, the middle of the storm.