in the midst
of the Caribbean
the skies open
lightening crashing so near
death startles the life in me

Just back from a cruise packed with wonderful moments and vivid memories of turquoise waters, white sand beaches, colorful flowers and birds and buildings, interesting people and landscapes and what do I choose to write about?--a thunderstorm in the middle of the Caribbean while we were on the top deck of the ship somewhere between Curacao and St. Maarten. Apparently, they are in their "hurricane" time, and even though there were no hurricanes or tropical storms in the forecast, this is the time of year they typically experience their unsettled, rainy weather, and so, almost every night, and at least once a day, we had a thunderstorm.

This thunderstorm was a doozy, yet it didn't keep people out of the pools or the jacuzzis to our surprise--at least until lightening struck the ship, or was diverted by a lightening rod. It was quite loud and just across the deck from us! Scary, but exciting! And so close to death, it reminded me of life and how precious and fleeting it is. It gave me a genuine sense of aliveness. Life is not about "getting" but about "experiencing". I was reading "the untethered soul" by Michael A. Singer while on vacation which just deepened my own philosophies about this journey we call life, and while this was occurring, I had no fear at all (me who was as a young girl absolutely petrified of thunder storms)--I saw it only as an amazing experience that I was allowed to witness, here on the planet earth in the middle of the Caribbean sea with David and 3,000 other souls I didn't know from Adam. Just an experience that I'll probably remember for a very long time.