I was in the middle of whipping up a batch of homemade rhubarb jam late last night when a giant clash of lightening exploded outside the window and the entire house went black. I waited a beat for the lights to crackle back to life but nothing. The power was out.
Ordinarily, an event like this would make my pulse quicken – the freezer will defrost! the milk in the refrigerator will go bad! where are all the flashlights? aaaaah! life sucks and then you die! — but Jake was there and I knew everything would be okay.
I suppose that sounds terribly regressive. But for a man who has spent a year and a half in Iraq and another year in Afghanistan, a power outage in Virginia is like a picnic in the park. A non event. A mosquito bite. A big whatever. I am thankful for that calm composure because it keeps me — someone a bit prone to the fits — relaxed.
“What about the freezer?” I asked.
“Don’t open it,” he offered.
Jake unearthed some flashlights and head lamps. (Jake was an Eagle Scouts. Eagle Scouts don’t exist without flashlights and head lamps.) We pulled out our candles, procured for just such an occasion. I called the power company to report the outage. Then we sat at the dining room table, faces lit up by candlelight,and talked like two civilized human beings.
To think it took a power outage to bring a moment of clarity to my day.
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Hope it didn’t/doesn’t last for long. I remember with great fondness a moment when the power went out when my daughter was just a few months old and I nursed her by candlelight in the middle of the night. One of my most cherished memories of her infancy.
Wanted to tell you how much I have been enjoying your blog. My brother is a 3x veteran of the Middle East, AND has that AWFUL haircut too! My sympathies to you. Thanks for the blog entries that make me stop and re-consider.
My 12 year old son still freaks out about power outages. I am like “Let’s invite the neighbors over and make s’mores in the fireplace.” It is a nice cozy night inside. I hope the storm passed uneventfully and that daylight also brought you power that is on again.
My mom always loved it when the power went out when we were kids and we all sat around playing board games in candlelight. I’m sure it reminds her of the days when we were little before we had electricity – yes, we didn’t get electricity until 1988!
That’s so sweet.
I love a power outage, although I secretly fret about those overpriced fruit bars losing their shape in the freezer. I also admit it is nice to have a little testosterone around to crank up the generator…
Ah, the unexpected blessings. I hope all your disappointments are just as fulfilling!