Magic from the earth

Newmans weather can be unpredictable at the best of times. We care currently in the wet season. Cyclones bring in rains, soaking the earth so the rivers can run.
Cyclone Heidi has brought a lot of weather and with it, issues. Cars are abandoned at flooded roads near mining sites. Trucks cannot get in or out of Newman, and many of the ladies here have washing coming out the wazoo!
The last few days have been pretty dry. I hang out my washing in clear blue skies, head out and notice an ominous mass of angry black cloud heading our way. That would be right! I've just hung out my washing for the first time in over a week!
I do my grocery shopping child free (what bliss it is to sometimes just be totally alone!). I get chatting with a friend as you do, and we are cut short by an almighty bang and flash of white light. The shop lights spark. Everyone freezes. Then we all pile outside to look. We are right in the centre of a lighting cell!
Lighting has hit the shopping centre, folks saying their teeth were 'buzzing'. The rain starts to get heavy. My logic at the time, with a full trolley of groceries, was that the rain was only going to get worse, and can last for hours, days here!
I brave the rains and lighting, running out to the car with a bit of a panic in my eye, thumbling to get the back door of the 4WD open. No sooner do I get it open, but not far from me, another lighting strike hits the building near me!
I have never been this close to lighting. At the time, adrenaline hit me, so hard, I think I could have picked up the trolley unassisted and thrown the whole thing in the back of the 4WD!!!! I throw bags into the back thinking to myself about how I'd rather not die by lightening today! Not caring for my trolley, I put it in an empty space, and then thumble with my hard to open 4WD door, jump in, looking like a drowned rat.
Now that the scary experience is over, and I've calmed down at just how close I was to the strikes, I can marvel and feel almost privledged that I got to see lightening that close. It is beautiful. I can't put into words what it looked like, but it was amazing!

My day continued with a tour of the town for a newbie, followed by our 4WD overheating and almost dying! Whilst my partner was working on fixing the 4WD, I thought it would be a good time to have a little hunt for some photographic gems.
The mushroom above is one of them. Under the trampoline, are lots of big mushrooms sprouting up. It's hard to grasp their size from the photo, but today I am sharing a mushroom!
I hope tomorrow is a little clamer.