When I perceive the gods' presence in nature, sometimes I feel that it is a sign as in an omen and sometimes it's just a sign of their presence as in a way that one detects them. When we talk about whether something is a sign, I think a lot of us talk past each other because someone will call something a sign and mean it as in the signs and symptoms of the presence of x thing, and other people will think they are talking about being the chosen one of a novel.
I've heard people say not every thunderstorm is Thor, but to me, every thunderstorm is definitely Thor. Sometimes he's showing up for me and sometimes he's just doing his thing. And either way, thunder is a sign-- of his presence. It's how we detect him. It doesn't necessarily mean anything else, unless there is some context in which his presence would be the answer to a question, but that would be highly unusual to the point of nearly unheard-of. Which is why I think people misunderstand when I say he's in every thunder roll. They misunderstand when I say he will sometimes show up for me. And sometimes he would show up for my mom, even though she was an atheist.
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