This I Believe

On the healing nature of thunderstorms.

Just as no fire is as warm as the one after an evening snowfall, no grass is as green as that which follows a morning rain. Because of this, I believe in storms.

Not just a light sprinkle, mind you, who's raindrops gently kiss the earth and create small pools before dissipating, but a real storm . A tumultuous, catastrophic, destructive, dangerous storm. The kind that is sensed by animals hours before it appears, causing them to hide in their respective homes, curled up with their young. The kind that can be seen encroaching upon a blue sky with large, purple and black cumulonimbus clouds that slowly lumber their way, inevitably, to their destination.

Ancient Chinese medicine depends on a system of yin and yang, of light and dark interplaying and interconnecting, each reliant upon the other. In a similar way, the brightness and luminescence of a sunny day can only truly be realized by a contrastingly dark and stormy one. If we as humans did not have the notion of such darkness, it is arguable that we would not have an idea of perfection and beauty: if we didn't know of Hell, would we wish to be a part of Heaven?

But then again, who says that darkness can't be beautiful as well. Is it in our nature to be weary of that which is mysterious, and which our senses have trouble discerning? Or is it something more existential and divine?

I digress.

Storms are not only an example of stark contrast, but are wholly necessary. While the rain falls and nourishes the parched soil and plant life, the wind strikes the trees, removing excess leaves and twigs and placing them on the ground for further cultivation. Lightning strikes dead and drying wood, causing flames meant to engulf all that is surplus, and allowing for future renewal.

It is in this way that, as is true with most things in life, when destruction occurs, it is in the name of rebirth. Fires almost instantaneously bring about the formation of new buds; disease is responded to by the creation of enzymes and antibodies which protect against further sickness. Almost every process on the face of this small planet involves cycles and, without the dark, destructive side of the circle, the true extent of the positive side would go unrealized.

For all of these reasons, I believe in rebirth. I believe in healing and rejuvenation. I believe in a necessary evil. And most of all, I believe in storms.

Jacob Dunton

Jacob Dunton