As lightning forked across the British sky last night, the nation held its breath. But the national grid, that unlovely monument to Victorian engineering and modern resilience, did not buckle. It hummed.
It absorbed. It endured. In an age where we are told that everything is falling apart, the infrastructure of this island stood firm.
Perhaps we should take note: not every structure is as fragile as the intellectual scaffolding we have built around it. The storm was a test, and we passed. But do not mistake this for a happy accident.
The grid works because engineers, planners, and workers have maintained a culture of competence that much of our society has lost. While our elites obsess over Twitter feuds and identity politics, the real business of keeping the lights on continues, largely ignored. That is a lesson worth pondering as the thunder fades.
