WAITING FOR THE STORM
by contemplativeinquiry
I took this picture from an upstairs window before 9 a.m. on18 February 2022,. It shows blue sky and the tower of St Mary de Crypt, Gloucester. The image is calm, and I enjoy its simple beauty. But I am bracing for a severe storm, officially named ‘Storm Eunice’. We are on red alert, which is very rare in this country. I contemplate the tower, which stands both for longevity and impermanence.
It is 10.15 a.m. now and the wind, at first just playful, has moved into serious gusting. Paper and leaves blow about in a courtyard. The sky is grey and there are raindrops on my window pane. Taking another picture, I notice I have lowered my sights. I have included more material substance, roof tops in particular. The invitation to skyward contemplation, so poignantly encouraged by towers like this, isn’t so present for me in this moment. The theme now is embodied endurance and solidity, weathering the winds of the world. For they don’t seem at all celestial, their current force at least partly the result of our own collective behaviour. Strong walls and a decent roof are the focus of my desire. I am, after all, a Pagan.
I am an urban Druid now, more clearly than before. It gives me a different view of nature. On one hand I am reminded that everything is included in ‘nature’. But in so far as I make a city/country distinction, I do notice a different experience of the elements, seasons, and the varieties of life. In an old and relatively small city (pop. 165,000) it is easier to see the evolution of human culture as a gradual and organic process than in other built environments. Today is a special day because raw and conceivably violent nature is coming on a visit. Whilst I notice fears around this, and am distressed by the notion of harm to anyone, I also find an aspect of Spring, and renewal, in this. I do feel energised, now, just after 11 a.m., and this at least is welcome. I have no idea of how the day is going to play out here, or what I am going to feel about my experience of Storm Eunice at the days end.
contemplativeinquiry 
Hoping none of us get too much drama today.
Indeed yes. My best to you and Tom.
It’s funny — I think of New Orleans, where I live, as an “old and relatively small city,” but compared to where you are it’s young and relatively large! Of course we take storms very seriously here, especially when they have names. I hope you come through Eunice alright.
Thanks for your good wishes Bart. It’s Saturday morning and Eunice has blown through. Not a big problem in our immediate locality, apart from transport disruption and some trees down. People had been advised to stay at home and most did. A derelict building on the waterfront lost its corrugated iron roof. The flooding we were expecting didn’t happen here. For other parts of the country it was more serious – half a million people have lost power, and four people are known to have died. Winds varied from a fairly common 70-80 mph to a 122 mph max. The storm has moved on to the European continent now, still with the power to do damage. But the effects are nothing like those of Katrina, which I still vividly remember from the reporting after all these years.