20 hours ago we were packing ice chests by candles light because this time yesterday a sudden, angry, lake-sloshing storm blew pine trees into power lines. I love East Texas thunderstorms… in different circumstances.
The storm rolled in while my parents were buying 2+ days worth of groceries for the 16 guests coming to the cabin tomorrow. I must say, Mom and Dad made an impression on me when they returned soaked, scared and laden with a chunk of the small-town store’s refrigerated section.
Dad calmly waited for the storm to calm then drove back for ice and chests to fill. We ate peanut butter for dinner in the dark and Mom did not act stressed or worried. With money on the line, hungry guests coming, a soon-to-be out-of-stock market, a hospitality bug like my mom’s, and no idea when power would return, an average person might become a dramatic frazzled frenzied complainer listing off every inconvenience that she so temporarily faced. But they didn’t. And their reaction made an impact on their adult daughter. I admire my parents’ impenetrable patience and adaptability.
Electricity was on by morning. At 6am they stocked the fridge. Life is easier when we don’t make it so hard.
Aside:
I should practice voicing movie trailers for my personal dramas to measure how terrible they really aren’t.
Intense voice for typical action flick, “In the face of massive inconvenience… bum bum bum… Heather rushes to finish the dishes before the baby wakes up! Her back is turned. Will her son drop another toy down the heater vent? Will he need her help opening the Cars 2 box? Will her husband come home before she seasons the chicken or brushes her hair? Find out in a theater near you!
