As I’m writing this morning, rain is still pounding the Gulf coast as the remnants of Hurricane Harvey linger over Houston and other portions of the Deep South. This is not a new torture for this area. Every few years they endure almost exactly the same results from a differently named storm. Cities flood. Homes and businesses are destroyed. People die. Then, they rebuild.

Then, once the storm is gone they rebuild. They start over. Everything is brand new, hopefully stronger, better, and better able to withstand whatever comes next. The dirt and debris

The dirt and debris wash out with the tides. Gone. Nothing left but memories; some good ones, some bad ones. The process repeats itself irregularly. Somehow, the planet seems to know better than we do when a place needs a good scrubbing.

Water does a wonderful job of cleaning things up. We notice it when we step outside after a rain shower and smell the fresh fragrance of the air. We feel it for ourselves when we bathe. Water cleans us like nothing else.

Sometimes, though, we need a little more. A relationship ends. A job is lost. One’s world begins to crumble. Life needs to change but it is hampered by the debris of all that was.

So, one cleans up. Change houses. Change jobs. Change clothes. Shave your head. Start over.

The shower becomes a metaphor. Dark shadows of the past contrast with bright highlights of hope for the future. Steam rises off the skin, an endurance of momentary pain knowing that it is washing away all the negative energy and feelings from what once was. Water flows over the head, down the back, and into the drain taking with it all the ruin and debris.

Storms are difficult and frightening. Not everyone survives. Those who do, however, are stronger. Refreshed. Ready to move forward.

Such is the natural process of life on the planet earth.

[As always, click on any thumbnail below to open the full gallery.]

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