Thursday, July 17, 2008

Sky Watch Friday - Watching the Storm

With the many storms we've experienced this year across Kansas, I've learned to find the beauty in the prelude of their wrath.

This one crept in from the south, building back as far as the eye could see and stretching diagonally into the Oklahoma border. I watched in fascination from the bed of my husband's pick-up as the tops built up higher and higher; visibly pluming into soft cottony tufts. Though I knew it contained dangerous lightening, hail and high winds, I couldn't help but be captured by the intense beauty of its presentation.

I stayed out as long as I felt was safe and until the realism hit me in gray smoldering clouds that spat raindrops upon me and sent me indoors to watch from the window.

Sometimes I miss the city with the shops down the street, art and music. And then I look up to the vastness above and hear the beautiful sound of silence, see the perfection in God's paintings and find wonder in a gift that no store will ever sell.

Tune in to Tom for more Sky Watch.

26 comments:

Rose said...

I only remember seeing clouds like that one time in my life and I didn't have a camera..,

Snap Catch said...

Perfect catch for SWF! Mine's up too hope you can drop by... Have a great weekend!

Anonymous said...

There sure is beauty in the prelude of this wrath! Very impressive, and I love the sweep in the last :)

Coy Hill said...

Ooooh, I love these shots! You sure do have a big horizon in Kansas!

I can understand how you feel about missing the city. Being a country boy myself, when I visit the city for a few days I begin missing the quiet beauty of the country.

rachel said...

the clouds look great! these are wonderful photos!

Michele said...

You really have captured some wonderful towering clouds... they are massive in size... incredible photos!!!!!
Mountain Retreat Photos and
Fishing Fiesta

SandyCarlson said...

Those clouds are majestic. Mother Nature sure knows how to dress.

Lilli & Nevada said...

wow these are great white and heavy clouds great shot.

Anonymous said...

A storm could either be a good or a bad thing, but the clouds you photographed were certainly great!

My SWF is posted HERE.

Hope you can drop by. Happy weekends!

Anonymous said...

absolutely beautiful cloud pictures!
have a nice weekend!

Rune Eide said...

Much more beautiful than our dull grey ones.

Tom said...

These are fantastic cloud shots.. like you I would have had to watch this.. I stop in the streets at time and watch whats it happening in the clouds.. try doing it in a crowd... with in a short time everyone is looking up:O)

Thank you for joining this week and helping to make sky watch the place to be. Enjoy all the comments your post will get, try to vist others, but mostly enjoy the fun of Sky Watch.

The Sky Watch Team

Dewdrop said...

You captured the heart of a storm chaser in your words... the amazingly awesome beauty of God's sky canvas. I'm glad you're appreciating the beauty of the storms. Great swelling cumulus shots!

srp said...

We FINALLY had some rain... the storms weren't fierce, just your normal rumbles and, for once, a steady soaking rain.... even a bit of street flooding which I found unusual here. The grass and the birds (birdbath) really loved it... so did the fire fighters in the Great Dismal Swamp. The smoke has not been as bad since.

Great pictures.

Louise said...

There's nothing like watching a storm build and having the space to see it. Beautiful shots.

Unknown said...

That is a nice SWF. Sorry it took so long for me to get by! Have great weekend!

AnneKa said...

Greate Sky Watch post.
Have a nice weekend, from AnneKa in Norway

Unknown said...

Wow, beautiful set of photos for SWF.

Mustang Mike said...

Massive clouds look so pretty and so threatening at the same time. We have had a bit of that here, too. Thanks for sharing. Mustang Mike

John said...

What I love are the contrasts. Not only the colors, but the fact that all around the storm there are clear blue skies.

Great pictures, Lori!

jo(e) said...

Wow, these are beautiful.

Martie said...

They are beautiful, but too many of them spoils the crops in the field with standing water when it has no where to go because the ground is already saturated!

I love looking at the clouds though before, and after the storm. Now if I could just few the clouds without the storms, it would be perfect. But then, we don't live in a perfect world, do we!?

Hugs my friend!

storyteller said...

Marvelous storm series ... with such BIG SKIES!!! Thanks for sharing. I participated at Sacred Ruminations on Friday this week but am just now getting around to visiting others.
Hugs and blessings,

Julie said...

These are engrossing shots of a developing storm, Lori. I am sorry that I missed them until now. There are few things more awesome than watching banks of clouds tower above you with edges turning from grey, to black and then green.

Nice shots ... I will remember your tag next week.

Chad Oneil Myers said...

Lori,
Very cool sky images.

I just read your latest comment on my blog...that's awesome! ;)

...very true ;)

Thank You.

Jamie Dawn said...

Those are great pics! I got some shots of clouds from an airplane recently, and I just love them.
You can get lost gazing up into a cloudy sky.