‘About a year ago, I was outside. It was mostly sunny with just a few clouds. Then, suddenly came a bright flash and a tremendous boom. Scared the living daylights out of me. At first, I thought we had been nuked.’
30+ years ago the same thing happened to me. I was about to leave the basement garage carrying a large metal pry bar to rip out old fence posts at the top of a hill behind the house. Blue sky, few clouds then BOOM!
This was a point in my life where I think God was trying to get my attention.
Another close call with lightning was when I was a kid canoeing a river in FL with sever other folks. We reached a water hyacinth clog and had pull our canoes through the water along the bank.
I was the last boat and still in it when a bolt struck the pasture on the opposite bank. Everyone in the water got shocked and squealing and fetching about. The boat I was in was aluminum and I didn’t feel a thing—weird.
A buddy had his watch’s hands spin around and the dial glowed green then died.
One other time was when a group of us were bushwhacking through some Shenandoah mountains when a blow came up. We halted in what we thought was a safe spot to ride it out.
Lighting struck down the ridge from us and traveled up an old barbed wire fence about 10’ away. Everywhere the wire was stapled to the posts crackled and popped sparks.
Wow. You had some close calls. I would bet that you have a healthy respect for lightning.
Being born and raised in Alabama, I have experienced many lightning storms. But, that “out of the blue” lightning was a new experience.
I hope I never experience that again. That experience was terrifying to the point that I had to take another heart pill. I was standing under some trees when it happened.
God may have been trying to get my attention too. If so, he succeeded. I’m thankful that I wasn’t struck.
I hate lightning.