We’ve been in our home for 11 years and I can barely remember a time when we’ve lost power for more than a few hours. However, Sunday evening’s uber-strong winds left us powerless.
We were all doing our own things. I was editing an album spread for Kelsey, a senior client. Curt was watching TV downstairs and Lauren was playing a game on the iPad. Once the power went out at 8:30, we couldn’t watch TV or edit images. What we could do was snuggle to keep warm and talk (a novel idea!).
The next day, Curt and Lauren hung out all day, doing basketball drills in the (cold) house, and found tickets to the MSU basketball game, while I attended a photographic print competition. They had a great day together without electronics or other distractions. [well, there WAS a cell phone purchase for a certain 12 year old after she completed all the basketball drills given to her, but that’s a different story altogether!]
Tonight, we were dreading being home without heat and power. The weather is going to be in the 20’s, and sleeping wasn’t going to be as comfortable. So, we met for dinner and sat in the restaurant for over two hours, hanging out, sharing stories and just having fun as a family. We weren’t in a rush to get back to our projects; we sat and relaxed and….were a family. I can’t remember a dinner out as a family that was so enjoyable.
Since Lauren had school tomorrow, we finally pulled ourselves away from our booth and headed home. We had been told it would be Friday until power would be restored, and tonight is only Tuesday. We weren’t expecting anything at this point.
But driving down our street, there was light! And in our home, we saw the TV on through our window – just like it has been when the power went out 48 hours before. Yay! Life as we know it is back!
Ah, but not without a lesson – a lesson I’ve learned about power. Power, the electrical kind, can give us all kinds of comforts. It gives me the computer to edit my client images, the TV, heat and other conveniences for us. But “power” can easily take away the Power of the Family. The last 48 hours have made me realize how much “power” had robbed us of our family power. Tonight made me realize how important family power is to me, and if I have to snip a few electrical lines now and then to keep it, then that’s the way it has to be. 😉
