I love the power of Mother Nature. I appreciate when she reminds me of “who is in control.”

Yesterday, around 6:20 PM as the sky filled with dark clouds, and the rain started to fall, I was driving east on Monterey Road.  Every now and then I’d hear a loud “whack.”  I kept wondering why rocks were hitting my windshield. “This is odd,” I thought, “A construction truck must have gone by….”

The rain pelted down, and the skies darkened. Then suddenly, those “rocks” started pouring out of the sky, pinging loudly off the hood of my car in every direction. Finally, it dawned on me: “Hail!”

Unable to see, and overcome by sound, I pulled my car over into a parking lot sheltered by tall trees. Adrenaline pumping,  I sat there, frozen in my car, like a hiding animal waiting for the storm to pass….

With the rhythmic sound of the windshield wipers and the raging storm, I thought about stories of the old timers….

In my mother’s book “Stuart on the St Lucie,” she writes about the great hail storm of 1934 along the St Lucie River/Indian River Lagoon.

“Mother Nature initiated the new Roosevelt Bridge with an unusual occurrence that is still remembered by all who experience it. On February 10th, 1934 a hailstorm covered Stuart with ice, creating street scenes that looked like “someplace up North.”

So even though yesterday was intense, as far as hail is concerned, there was probably more in 1934. Mind you it was February….With my yard a mess, huge limbs down, no power, and wondering if my car is dented….I remain grateful for Mother Nature and her moods. Sometimes I feel that way too.

*Thank you to Becky Engebretsen for sharing her photos taken at the Stuart Convalescent Center in Stuart, 1500 Palm Beach Road, and Caroline Lawless, co-owner of  TEAM FIT in Cedar Point Plaza,  just west over the bridge from Sewall’s Point.

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To learn about hail: (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hail)