Struck By Lightning, By Gretel Ehrlich

In “Struck by Lightning” by Gretel Ehrlich, the author narrates her traumatic experience with being struck by lightning with very expressive descriptions to show the physical, emotional, and spiritual ramification caused during the event and its recovery. Ehrlich gets struck as she is out taking her two dogs on a walk on her ranch and then shares her thoughts and observations as she has just had a close encounter with death. She uses very descriptive imagery to describe the event and how it made her feel. Ehrlich mixes in descriptions of her physical pain and her wandering mind that is still in a state of panic, showing her train of thought. As her story progresses, she makes it to a hospital that does not provide very good equipment or care where the reader learns more about not only the author’s personal life, but also Ehrlich’s feeling of being trapped as she faces the consequences of the lightning. However, throughout the story, Ehrlich keeps her two dogs in …show more content…
I enjoyed her very metaphorical and descriptive way of narrating such a traumatic event. As I was reading the story, I was able to imagine myself in her position and I had a clearer understanding of her thoughts by the detail. Her thoughts throughout the story were very interesting and the bits of humor mixed in between the serious event was entertaining to me. The story reminded me of going hiking in very rocky and hilly areas. The ambulance ride reminded me of driving down the dirt road that connects to my street, especially after a storm or heavy rain, since it is very bumpy, rocky, and filled with deep potholes. The most interesting thing to me in Ehrlich train of thought throughout her narration was her observation of the other people around her. She closely noticed to interactions between them and how they act and I could relate to it since I probably would have been just as observant, especially if I could not say or do