Rainy Days 

by OnTheCusp

“Some people feel the rain.  Others just get wet.”  - Bob Marley

I woke up this morning with the wind howling and the rain beating down.  “YES!” I thought happily, as I turned over and burrowed down deeper into the covers. 

If it were a sunny weekend, I would have dragged myself out of bed at the crack of dawn, too guilt-ridden to stay in bed.  I would have stretched and yawned and made a mental list of what I needed to do before my family woke up.  I would have gone for a brisk walk in my quiet neighborhood.  Upon return, I would have stopped to survey my yard and inevitably would have spent an hour pulling up weeds and trimming the bushes.  I may have made a quick trip to the local home improvement store to pick up mums, leaf bags and fall fertilizer.  It would have been active. Productive.  And all before breakfast. 

There is nothing more beautiful in the fall than the deep blue of a cloudless sky and the warm mellow mid-day sun that causes the trees to turn into spectacular colors.  Here is in the Northeast, we’ve had plenty of beautiful, sunny days.  Despite the record snow in Boston last year, the ground is parched and water levels are very low.  This weekend’s rainy forecast is welcome news on many fronts.

My Couch to 5k group will get an extra day to rest our sore, still-developing runner’s legs.  Friends on the soccer circuit, get a day off from cheering and shuttling to and from games.  Overscheduled kids have a morning or afternoon to themselves.  Toddlers will joyously stomp away in the puddles and watch the worms in abundance.   The rain is washing away the dust, the dirt, the grime of a sun-baked summer.  It is taking care of the drooping garden and the brown lawn.

Rain has its own relaxed fashion rules.   It’s all about flannels and jeans weather.  Today, there is freedom from hair dryers and styling apparatus:  Today’s blown style is courtesy of Mother Nature.  Galoshes and old sneakers are the perfect footwear for dashing to and from car to building and back again. 

Inside the home, the fashion word is cozy.  Gray skies call for lit lamps and candles.  Blankets are tossed on the couch, for snuggling in with books and movies.  The steady beat of the rain on the windows outperforms anything on i-Tunes.  The kitchen will eventually fill with the sounds of the whistling kettle and the smell of cinnamon from apples baking in the oven. 

​Today is a gift from the outside world that forces us to slow down.  And I’m going to savor it, slowly.
 

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