“May you always have walls for the winds, a roof for the rain, tea beside the fire, laughter to cheer you, those you love near you and all your heart might desire.”

– Irish Blessing

It takes a good bit of rain to keep me indoors, and we have had a good bit of rain this week.  Before any alarm clock rang this morning, an automated phone call from the school district announced that the second day of school is cancelled.  Too many roads are flooded to allow the safe busing of students.  Only a fool or a sailor would argue with flooded roads.  As I ran down my list of planned errands for the day, I passed it through a topographical filter and realized that the things I had planned will simply have to wait for a day when the water has receded.  This is when the Irish blessing ran through my mind.

There is something warm and cozy about knowing that there is nowhere to go on a stormy day.  There is nothing like that kind of stormy day to remind us what a blessing it is to have warmth, shelter, and family inside those protective walls we call home; and there are no walls that can shelter us like the love that holds us close and the laughter that drowns out the sound of the wind and rain. I am embarrassed to admit that it is the contrast of the wild storm outside and the warmth inside that reminds me to appreciate having a place — and people — that I call home.  I should hold that appreciation in my heart every minute of every day.

As my list of errands is redone to include curling up with a good book, maybe watching an old movie, and definitely cooking some wonderful dinner that will fill my home with inviting aromas, I think of those whose home has no walls and whose life has no loved ones to encircle them.  I hold them in my heart and send out a prayer, hoping that some love will touch their lives.  Why does it take a storm to remind us that there are others who need just a small piece of the abundance we enjoy every day.  May “all our hearts desire” grow to include all who need to know the warmth of family.  May our hearts open to expand our definition of family and include those who need it most.

What a beautiful rainy day it is, for it reminds me of the blessing of home.