Rain

Rain today

We may get lots of rain today, particularly welcome after a 113 (F) heat index (45 in Celsius). We’re in a 1-3 inch range, and I would like to see a gullywasher where the rain is sheeting off the streets and you can hardly see through the drops.

A few of my favorite rains

I love rain in all its permutation, but here are some of my favorite rains:

Photo by Josh Hild on Pexels.com

• Midwestern gullywashers, as stated above. Rain that roars on the rooftop, that causes instant puddles in the gutters. Gone almost as soon as it’s started. On a summer day, when encountering a gullywasher, one should give up trying to find shelter. One must just accept that one will be drenched to the skin. I remember walking barefoot and singing loudly in the storm, knowing that I had found freedom from being well-dressed and well-behaved.
• The sunny afternoon rainbow sprinkle of rain. There are clouds bringing rain, yet the sun still takes up the sky, and the combination yields a rainbow if one comes round right.
• October evening thunderstorms. I love walking out in October thunderstorms. It takes some good rain gear — I used to have a long wool cloak with a hood that negates most of the rain. October thunderstorms are moody and romantic, the Midwestern US version of a stroll across the moors.
• Light rains in April which green up the grasses and invite the daffodils to awaken.

The western states need rain

The American West is in what is called a “super-drought”. It has not rained at all in a few places for a couple years. Wildfires burn in several states. I cry when I think of those places, and I hope they will be rained upon, making their reservoirs fill and their fires extinguish. If we could get a handle of this global warming (hint: corporations pick a reasonable level of profit and make their processes cleaner) we might have a chance.

So when I watch the rain today I will pray (which I seldom do) that the West sees an abundance of rain and that we as humans see an abundance of wisdom that will help us make the decisions that will stem global warming.