Was that a light flashing or am I seeing things?

I love thunderstorms!!
I mean, I really really REALLY enjoy them!!
The sudden flash of light across the sky, followed by that deep rumbling thunder that can be felt down in your core!
I guess I have my Dad to blame for that.  He enjoys storms too.  I remember, as a child, growing up in Toronto, we would stand in the doorway during a storm and watch the lightning and then count... one, two, three, four.... boom, the thunder would rumble!  Supposedly, the count would indicate how far away the storm is.   I enjoyed those nights.  I can still almost feel the charge in the air and smell the storm.

Later, as a married woman, I lived in Peterborough, Ontario,  They used to get amazing lightning shows there.  I expect they still do.  My hubby used to take me up to Armour Hill to watch the storm. Spectacular!!  God's light show beats any man-made fireworks show by far!!  Loved those evenings!

Now we live in Newfoundland.  I love Newfoundland... but there are a few things from Ontario that I really miss... Pizza Pizza is one of them...  another is thunderstorms.

Thunderstorms are rare here.  And when they do come, they are fleeting.  A couple flashes of light and maybe some distant thunder.  Not very spectacular.  We do get our share of storms... wind storms, heavy rain... even hurricanes.  But thunder and lightning, not so much.

Twice in my life I have been lying in bed with the thought, "was that a light flashing? Or am I seeing things?"
One of those times was last night...  the other was about 15 years ago.

Hubby and me were asleep in the parsonage of our very first pastoral charge... a very remote, fly-in community on the coast of Hudson Bay.  Our infant son was asleep in his crib.
Something woke me up.  A flash of light?  What!?!  It took a moment or two for the grogginess of sleep to clear.  Yes.  Definitely, a flash of light.  There was someone in our house!!  Taking pictures??  No.  Hubby wake up!!  Wake up!  WAKE UP!!! (hubby is a very sound sleeper)  There is someone in our house!   What!?!

And so we go to investigate.  Turns out two young men had broken into our home.  We confronted them... they yelled a few not so nice words and left.  Funny... I wasn't afraid... just angry at the intrusion.  Perhaps I was too groggy and low on caffeine to have the sense to be afraid.  But all was well... they were gone.

The flashing light you ask?  We discovered the next day that they had stolen my hairspray (they drink it when they can't get their hands on alcohol)...  and some porkchops.  Yes, porkchops.  I had a large tray in the fridge that I had planned to give to a family who had just lost their home in a fire.  The flashing light was the fridge door opening and closing.  I guess our thieves were hungry.
A flash of light... and again last night...

Was that a light flashing?  Or am I seeing things?  Nope, not a dream.  Definitely, a flash of light.  And another... and another!!  A thunderstorm!!!

And so around 3 a.m. I crawled out of bed...  stood in the doorway and watched and listened.  Not much of a storm...  several flashes of light... one or two distant rumblings... but it was enough.

I went back to bed with a smile on my face... filled with happy thoughts of past storms spent with the special people in my life.   And with a big thank you in my heart to God, the best pyro-technician ever!

IneedaCoffeenow!