Junk my Car Blog

When I was about 6 years old, my mom, stepdad, brother and I were on our way home from some outing. We got caught up in traffic, during a huge storm, and my stepdad ended up getting off the highway to find a "better" way home. I don't even know where we were, all I know is it was pitch black on some old back country road in Eastern CT, when all of a sudden some old song came on the radio, and My Step Dad pulled over and got us all out of the car. He put the radio way up, and there, with the only light being the headlights beaming from the car, in the pouring rain, we all danced in front of the car for what seemed like hours (I'm sure it wasn't really that long, but things seem so much longer when you're a kid).

Soaking wet, the four of us then piled back into the car, and headed home. To this day, I can't even remember where we went that day; All I can recall is how much fun it was to dance in that rain storm.

Years later, when I was about 14 years old, a whole bunch of family friends, my aunt, younger cousin, and I were driving alongside the Brooklyn Bridge one night, and it began to rain.

I remember everyone in the caravan of cars that were with us pulled off onto the side of the road and we all went out and spent some time singing and reflecting on all the things we had to be grateful for, again, in the pouring rain. It was something that sounded so crazy, yet it was so refreshing.

Years later, here I am at the age of 25, and I realize that those two nights may have been when I learned the most valuable lesson I have ever learned. See in the physical act of playing and rejoicing in the rain, it showed me something so important--I learned how to appreciate the rain; How to dance in it. Instead of bickering and complaining, that we had to be stuck in the middle of nowhere in the rain, my stepdad taught my brother and I, that night, how to dance in the rain, how to look at something that the world would see as negative, and find a reason to rejoice about it, and years later alongside the Brooklyn Bridge, I was reminded again, not only to play in the rain, but to be thankful for those seasons of life.

See, I've come to realize that it's not whether you go through a storm or not that makes you who you are, It's how you choose to go through it. You can either be miserable, and focus completely on the circumstances that surround you, or you can dance in the rain; rejoice through the storm, and see it as an opportunity expand your knowledge, experience, and ultimately make you a better YOU.

So, the next time you’re faced with a storm in life, take a moment to reflect, and decide to dance in the rain.