the girl friends / dance

April 28, 2015

It’s been fun sharing monthly illustrations of my Girl Friends. (See all of them here: January / February / March). For this month, I thought I would also share the inspiration behind the drawing with you.

Several years ago, my friends and I (whom the Girl Friends collection is based on) were together in New York City. It was our last evening and we decided to do some “touristy” type of things and walk through Broadway Street. All of a sudden, without warning, it started pouring down rain. (Like “cats any dog” kind of rain). If you know New York, you know that Broadway Street is a super busy area.  We tried rush to the nearest shelter, but with the crowds, it was nearly impossible. So, there we were. Drenched. From top to bottom.  We couldn’t get out of the rain and there were crowds of people everywhere! With the sound of taxis honking their horns, lights from the buildings glaring into our eyes, and loads of people on the sidewalks, I was about to panic. We looped our arms into each other so we wouldn’t be separated from the enormous crowds.  Somewhere, in the midst of this stormy, chaotic situation, one of us made a joke. Instead of being annoyed at the situation or mad that our hair and clothes were soaked, we laughed. I remember laughing so hard, I could barely walk. I forgot about the downpour. I looked up at the sky and let the rain pour down on my face. And instead of running from the rain, I embraced this moment with my friends. There’s going to be storms in life, but God always seems to make it better. Maybe it’s through good friends and laughter or perhaps a stranger provides an umbrella. Whatever it is, He’s always there. And instead of hiding from the rain, you’ll want to dance!

(artwork by Ann Kelle / copyright 2015)

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