Wow, that one was loud and sounded really close to our bedroom window! At around 5:30 PM yesterday, with a start, my mind was suddenly on full alert. Then, almost right away, I thought, "Hey! I can write about thunder!"To start, so that we are clear, I do not believe in superstitions. With that in mind, I thought that it might be interesting to look at some of the many things that people associate with thunder.
- Mistletoe in the house protects it from thunder and lightning.
- Thunder following a funeral means that the dead person's soul has reached heaven.
- Thunder in February is thought to indicate snow in May.
- Every day that it thunders in February, it will be cold enough to frost the same day in May.
- Back in Roman times, bay leaves were thought to protest from thunder and lightning, ill-fortune, and witchcraft.
- If it thunders before 7:00 AM, then it will rain before 11:00 AM.
- Winter thunder means snow within ten days.
- Church bells were pealed during thunderstorms to prevent damage by lightning and to protect those within hearing range.
- A Japanese superstition says that you if you hear thunder, hide your belly button or the god of thunder will eat it.
When I was younger, I can remember saying that thunder was the angels bowling, and lightning was when they got a strike. Hehe. I still like to think that that is a good explanation for the thrilling phenomenon.What is thunder in the scientific sense? Thunder is the sound that lightening makes. I am not going to get into a whole science lesson here, yet here is a neat web page about it.
Do you have any stories or thoughts about thunder that you might like to share?
I like the heat lightening shows up north. Plenty of lightning, no thunder, no rain.
ReplyDeleteThat was an interesting read. Thunder in February means snow/frost in May? If it thunders before 7:00 a.m. it'll rain by 11:00. That's wild.
ReplyDeleteI am so glad that I am not superstitious; there would be soooo much to remember and keep track of.
ReplyDeleteWhen reading this post, it made me think of when my husband's best friend passed away. He was in a motorcycle accident a few years back and was on life support in the hospital. Long story short, he passed away. The night he died, there was a thunderstorm. Upon taking his last breath, there was a very bright bolt of lightning strike. We all kind of looked around at each other at that moment. Then, his wife said, " Its like he's riding the lightning", as in his soul is riding the lightning to heaven. I would have never believed this story had someone just told it to me, but it was the most amazing thing I have ever witnessed, so I wanted to share it with you all.
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