As I write today’s blog, my husband and I are relaxing to the sound of soothing music. The inspirational songs on our national park CD’s have proven to be some of the best music we own. My favorite is The Grand Canyon CD, which we purchased on one of our first camping trips to the Grand Canyon National Park.

Along with the JOYful music, I hear sounds of rain and wind. The coast of Washington is experiencing an intense storm. In the middle of the night, we woke to the sound of the wind rushing against our motorhome. Sections of our rig have slideouts to give us more room when we set up for our camping fun. Each slideout has a tarp-like topper to keep the mechanism and top of the slideout dry. We spent the night listening to the wind make a feast of the toppers.

This morning when my husband did his walk around the motorhome to survey the possible damage, he found the largest topper had ripped off the motorhome. We now sit in a smaller motorhome because my husband made the decision to close the other three slideouts, hoping to save the remaining toppers. The wind is blowing fifteen to twenty mph with gusts bursting through the air at up to thirty-five mph. The weather report indicates possible fifty mph winds before the end of the day.

This little adventure reminds me of a time in 2012 when we sat in our motorhome with the slideouts closed because of the wind. We stayed in an RV park in Michigan during the month of August. We were enJOYing a tasty breakfast when the weather took a turn for the worse. The wind turned violent in a matter of minutes. The trees looked as if they would uproot and fly away. I recalled that during a tornado warning a few weeks prior while camping in Minnesota, I found the Underground weather on my computer. But the current conditions made sure I couldn’t get the internet. Instead, we found a weather channel on TV and watched the storm move across the screen. I realized we were camping in a tornado alert area. The chaos of the tornado hung directly over us.

A few of the neighbors left the area in their cars. We rode out the storm in our rig, as I continued to watch the weather unfold on the television. Scary, but we made it through the day without the tornado swooping down upon us (although next time, I think I’ll follow the neighbors).

For me, the most interesting part of riding out a storm is what people choose to do while trapped indoors. If the area has power, people watch television, listen to music, or read.  My husband enJOYs watching the lightening, rain, and trees blowing in the wind. Some people eat or sleep during storms. I prefer to read a good book or write, as I’m doing now.

When I look around the campground today, I see a flurry of activity. Some campers sit inside their rigs and watch the storm. Outside, in the rain and gusts, people continue to walk their dogs. The animals appear to enJOY their walks, regardless of the downpours and wind. A teenage boy attempts to fly a kite in the twenty mph wind. Some of the campers have opted to leave, even though a strong wind advisory for high profile vehicles is in place, and the ranger advised them to stay put.

Many years ago, my husband and I took our children on a camping trip to the High Sierra’s in California. We didn’t have a rig to camp in, so my husband set up a tent. At that time, there were five of us. The kids ranged in age from nine to thirteen, and I remember our tent barely fit our five sleeping bags. We had to squish our duffle bags in the corners of the tent.

One day while camping on the shore of Bishop Creek, a huge thunderstorm hit the area. We needed to get out of the pouring rain and had the choice to either sit in the car or scrunch in the tent. We grabbed the Yahtzee game from the trunk of the car and sat in the tent for over two hours while the loud, drenching storm circled around us.

That afternoon was one of the best times for our family. We bonded over loud thunder, screams from our daughters at the clap of the thunder, laughter and silliness, and the sound of the dice rolling in the Yahtzee box. We munched from a tub of red licorice. Thrown together in closed quarters, we made the best of the situation. The storm took us all by surprise, but not as much as the delight and JOY we shared that afternoon.

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Have you made JOYous memories in the midst of storms? My readers and I would like to hear about your adventures. Please reply and share the JOY a storm sent your way.

The next time you are stuck inside during bad weather, may JOY cross the path of the storm and fill your home with delight.