During one of our game drives in the Maasai Mara Preserve in Kenya, the bright blue sky turned dark, and thunderous slate gray clouds gathered on the horizon while the wind howled through the grassy plains on either side of us. A storm was imminent.

Our Maasai guide asked if we would like to try to beat the storm and head back to camp or ride it out in the plains. We opted to ride it out as we were enamored with the elephants we had just spotted in the distance. Jacob (our guide) covered the open roof and windows with see-through plastic tarps and drove us toward the elephants. The rain soon came down in big heavy drops that sounded as if a thousand elves were tap dancing on the tarp above our heads. As the wind shook our Land Cruiser, a flash of lightening split the sky followed by a clap of thunder. Even as I enjoyed the spectacle of the storm, I silently wondered if we had made the right choice in riding out the storm.

As if reading my thoughts, Jacob quickly reassured us that the storm would soon be over, and we were safe. He was right. Soon, all was still and quiet and a patch of sunlight peeked through the blanket of dark clouds. The air which had been hot and stagnant before the storm now smelled so fresh and new. I closed my eyes and breathed in as deeply as I could over and over. How could I describe the sweetness of this air? These four words popped into my mind. “It smells like hope.” Yes, it smells like hope I repeated to myself with a smile. It took a storm to bring me the scent of hope.

As we head toward the hope that Easter represents, may we remember that with God, the storms of life can be the vehicles of hope.

Shared by Patricia Wu.