Have you ever stopped to think about how annoying rain can be? I would bet you have. Most people I know don’t really like the rain. People drive considerably worse in it, the possibility of stepping in a puddle and getting wet sock is very real, and a lot of people can have their hair ruined simply by having to walk outside. From the movies using a rainy day to symbolize gloom or imminent threat to works of art that are titled “Rainy Days” to alert the consumer of said art that the subject matter will be slightly depressing; there is so much negativity associated with rain. Heck, even people who sing, dance, or even twerk in the rain (that’s a Todrick Hall reference) are looked at as weird. Rainbows are not negative but they only seem to happen when the rain is gone. Rain gets a bad rep and one of the most popular phrases that is shrouded in negativity is “When it rains it pours”. Well I am here to say that no matter how much it pours, rain shouldn’t be looked at so negatively.
Rain, in the literal sense, is very essential to this planet. All types of wildlife, plant and animal, need rain for sustenance and survival. Humans need rain as without it there are droughts, and I am not sure if you know about droughts but people die in them. Rain can also cool the overall temperature and remove pollen from the environment which helps people with pollen related allergies. As I am sure you all know this stuff already I will move on to the meat of what I want to discuss and this is the benefits of rain in the metaphorical sense.
If you have read any of my last two pieces it is clear that I am in a bit of a stormy season. There are many issues I am currently processing and dealing with due to my father’s passing BUT WAIT… THERE’S MORE! So yesterday, as I was sitting in my living room working, yes work is a little busy at the moment with the Winter Olympics, I received a text message from my mother. She had been having some pain and breathing issues in the last few weeks but it got worse so she went to the hospital. As she was walking in, she passed out and they admitted her to the E.R. Now she is out of the E.R. at the time I am writing this, but due to some issues they found they are keeping her in the hospital until they run tests and she gets better. I saw the text, responded to her and just didn’t think about it. I want to deal with one day at a time.
So this morning, as it is Sunday, February 11th, 2018, I was set to attend my father’s home going service which was slated to begin at 1:00 PM. It was now going to be bittersweet as I knew since my mother could not go, and my brothers would not go, I would be the only one of us four in attendance. I left my house around 11:15 AM and as I was pulling out my parking lot the GPS updated and said my ETA was now close to 2:00 PM. The literal rain caused multiple accidents and needs for construction, so I decided to take the alternate route but more accidents happened and I ended up missing the service. I made it to the repast, and after leaving a gathering for one deceased parent I had to go directly to the hospital to see my mom who is having problems. As I was driving to the hospital, I almost thought “When it rains it pours” but my mind shifted gears and I started thinking about how this could actually be positive.
I will say this, it is not fun to be losing one parent, regardless how strained the relationship, only to go to see your other parent in the hospital in the same week. With this in mind, it is also not fun to be caught out in a storm when you prefer weather in the upper 70’s with a clear sky. As I grow older I realize that what I prefer cannot always be what happens. I would prefer my parents be alive and healthy and bubbling with energy, but if that were the case I would be as a plant that existed in an area that was always bright and sunny with no rain. I would not grow and I would eventually wither away, not only having not grown to my full potential but having not grown to be as beautiful as I should have become with the proper nourishment that rain could provide. I have to actively work to make sure that I am thinking of these stormy seasons in the sense that the rain is necessary and not a nuisance. I can easily break down and think about all the negative things I am going through but will that change what is happening? If I am walking outside and the sky opens up and I am caught in a sudden rain storm and I stop to think about how wet I am and how my shoes can get ruined, will that make the rain go away? The answer is no, and if we are in a storm then the best thing to do is continue pressing forward until you find shelter.
I am writing this as writing can be a shelter for me. The storms in my life are not positive or negative, they are storms. Though, how I choose to interpret them determines if I see them as negative or positive. I believe we all get to this point at some point in our lives and when we do it helps us to maintain a calm mind in a not so calm world. I have not shed one tear, I have not told any of my managers or let these last few weeks impact my performance at work, and I have not isolated from society as I usually do. I am looking at these rainy days as opportunities for me to grow and for the pollen that is negative thoughts to be washed away and carried to a land far away from me. I will equip an umbrella to best prepare me to continue walking through these storms, and I say storms because I am not so naive to believe that just because one cloud finishes expelling rain means there will never be another cloud to follow it. The forecast of life will always be a mix of sunny skies with warm weather and cold, damp, and rainy days. We just have to realize that no matter the weather, there is beauty in the forecast… especially the rainy days.
