Beyond the Storms

There's a place called the Abrolhos Islands. The weather there can be terrible. The howling winds, the wild seas. But when the wind stills and the sun shines, it becomes magical.

Finally, it can be seen for what it truly is. And it is beautiful. Teeming with life, fully alive yet finally peaceful.

There are many of these places around the world. Magical places, often hidden under swirling chaos.

So are we all. Blown about the forces that surround us, beyond our control, obscuring our beauty. So often, when we think we clearly see people we encounter for who they are, all we see is the weather that surrounds them. We see the storms of anger, the chill of loneliness, the relentless burning heat of a stressed life just trying to survive. We must remember to try to look deeper, to see, validate and love the person underneath. Because they are there, longing to show us the truth of who they are.

When we are belted with hail and whipped by wind and storm, we cannot fight it. We must try to endure; to hunker down one moment and push on the next. We cannot fight the weather. It is what it is.

And whilst some might avoid us at these times, it is only because they cannot see and do not know. There are those who love us, even when we are deep in the maelstrom. They watch us in stagger and bend in the wind, and marvel at our resilience. They know the storm will pass. And so must we.

Despite the vicissitudes of weathering fate, we remain, we endure, and we are beautiful. To my friends in storms, I know you're in there. And when I'm lost under the blackness, I know you can still see me.

Through our shared love, God's grace and the unceasing flow of time, all beauty endures. All we ask is for is the patience to endure, and the wisdom to see.