You guys, we’re not there yet.

I wish we were, too.

And I know one day we WILL be.

Next Fall our kiddos will start back to school.

We’ll smile as we load toilet paper into our carts.

People will return to work, and our economy will slowly recover.

We’ll mourn the loss of our country’s loved ones.

We’ll remember ALL the helpers. ALL the people who kept our country running.

One day, we’ll look back and laugh about homeschooling (and what a mess it was). We might even remember lovely dinners at home or game night or snuggling up on the couch for a movie.

We’ll cheer from the sidelines on Saturday.

Everyone will fill out a bracket for March Madness.

We’ll have the 2021 Olympics.

And we’ll ALL be changed somehow after Coronavirus.

I bet we’ll even have a day of remembrance.

But you guys…

We’re not there yet.

Because right now we’re standing in the middle of a storm.

And it’s HARD.

I KNOW we don’t want to be here.

We want to rush through.

Hurry past.

Gloss over it and focus on the positives.

We want it to be OVER already.

We want to talk about how strong we’ll be as a country. And all the warm, fuzzy memories of quarantine. And the parties we’ll have.

This storm is too hard and scary and sad…so, we want to SKIP it entirely and get back to normal.

Back to Target.

Back to LIFE.

But we can’t!!

We can’t stop the rain.

We can’t quiet the storm.

WE ARE NOT THERE YET!

We have no choice but to stand here.

Right here.

In the rain.

Have you ever been in a storm???

I have.

When my husband left for drug rehab it was the hardest thing I’ve ever had to endure.

I was sure our marriage was ending. And he was probably going to die.

But I walked into that storm…

And stood there.

Rain and hail pelting my face.

Wind whipping my hair.

Lightning and thunder crashing all around me.

My feet sinking further into the muck and mire.

I felt angry and sad and scared and alone. And there was NOTHING I could do.

I COULDN’T STOP THE STORM.

I was powerless.

I cried out to God.

I begged the storm to stop.

But I could only wait.

Somehow, I KNEW in my core I was going to be okay. The storm would stop. Life would go on…regardless of the outcome.

But I HAD to stand there.

I HAD to experience that storm.

Soaked and freezing.

In all my pain and confusion and sadness and anger and uncertainty and loneliness.

I had to FEEL it all.

I didn’t know how I would survive.

But…

I did.

God met me right there.

And when it was time, the storm quieted. The clouds parted. And the sun cast a beautiful yellow glow after the rain. Like a child, I stood in the gutter and let the rainwater rush over my feet. I collected hail from the grass.

Then I walked out of that storm changed, somehow. And when I looked up, I gasped…

A rainbow.

There WILL BE a rainbow, you guys. I promise.

But we’re not there yet.

We’re in the middle of a storm.

Will you stand here with me??

In all our pain and confusion and sadness and anger and uncertainty and loneliness??

We can’t skip it. We have to experience the storm.

I promise we’ll be changed somehow.

And I know He meets us right here.

We WILL get through this storm.

We’re just not there yet.