I was on about my 300th airplane ride the other day when this thought came to me. You see it was a pretty nice day out, but there was good layer of clouds in the sky. Clouds that would either bring rain in the near future or just provide a nice shade against the 90° weather. I believe these were shade clouds because they were nice and pretty and puffy.

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As our plane was climbing towards the eventual 8,000 foot level, we passed through the clouds and the view of the homes and the greenery below disappeared. And you know what happens next. The windows turned white, the view obscured, and that plane started to shake and rattle. 

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I remember one such flight while going through the clouds, that the plane literally dropped 3 to 5 feet in the air as it had fallen into a crater, and if not for the seatbelts our heads would've hit the top of the ceiling. That was a pretty scary thing.

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Usually at this point I'll look at the passenger beside me and say, "they sure need to fix the potholes up here".    :-)

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Of course, usually after just a short minute or so, we always break out of those clouds and climb another few thousand feet above them to behold a totally different landscape below. A gorgeous white landscape of artwork that only God could create. A gentle white landscape so beautiful that somehow contains such violence and power within.

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One time while going through the clouds and shaking around nervously I thought to myself, "we've just got to get through these clouds". I knew that the other side would be beautiful. And of course, here come the real life analogies to that one statement.

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Sometimes we have to weather and break through some clouds in our life or in business. Perhaps it's the loss of a favorite employee that you just don't know how you will ever survive, but you always do.

Sometimes it's moving your son and his belongings from your home, to his new life with his beautiful new bride hundreds of miles away. Remember, clouds hold rain that we need to survive, so I'm not saying clouds are bad, just that they're not always enjoyable to go through.

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They could be a crazy weekend where four or five very important life events all happen to fall at the exact same time. You know you can't do them all, and you're going to be exhausted on Monday, but you just have to get through those clouds.

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So what started as a thought for me on a plane, based on the experience of knowing that coming out on the other side will be fine, has turned into a quiet life statement that I repeat to myself when I sense a rough patch approaching. "Just get through the clouds" and it will be fine.