The Most Important Thing about Rain

The most important thing about rain isn't rain at all. It's about attitude. Where is your attitude today? Wake up!

TOO MUCH?
There's folks in Bangladesh who are digging bodies out of the mud with the monsoon season getting started with torrential rains. And heavy rains in China continue through the weekend.

TOO LITTLE?
Over on this continent in Georgia the once in 20 years drought
caused the governor to declare a Day of Prayer for Agriculture to pray for rain.

OR JUST ENOUGH?
I woke up in the dark at that time when you know it is almost morning, but it isn't quite there yet. The pit-pat on the roof told me that it was starting to rain.

"Oh, rain!" I thought with joy. Rain! Pit-pat, pit-pat. This area of western Colorado gets some 10 inches of rain per year compared with the 200 in Hawaii, so when you hear the pitter-patter it's a pretty big deal. I'm still getting used to the weather on the western slope with its 15% humidity. It doesn't take a genius to realize that rain is a welcome sight in the desert valley.

I listened and prayed, "Grandmother Rain, you are honored and blessed and wanted here. Let it pour down on our land and peach trees and alfalfa and sweet corn for a good drink." I thought of the public herb garden for the society where we volunteer, because this week is our turn to water.

"Bless the herbs in the garden, Grandmother Rain," I whispered.

I slipped out on to the porch and opened up all of the windows. Pit-pat, pit-pat. Then pitter-patter, pitter-patter - the rain started going a little stronger.

"What could be better than rain!" were my first words to Tom as he entered the doorway to the porch. "I can't think of anything better than that," he said.

"Let's take a walk outside," I said back to Tom, anxious to be out in the magnificence of it.

It's all about attitude. Dressed in yellow slicker, green rubber boots and umbrella, I splashed in the rushing waters of the gutter and laughed, remembering how we sailed little homemade boats in the rain ditches in front of the house when we were young. We walked by a house with a man sitting on his porch with a steaming cup and a smile. I said, "Beautiful rain!" to him and waved. "We Need It," was his happy reply. Chalk up another good attitude for the morning.

A few blocks later a young girl darted outside scowling at the rain with no coat, pulling her collar up around her neck. Bad morning for her, I guess. Not so good of an attitude. She was missing the wonder of the morning. I choose instead to splash in more puddles and look up at the trees receiving the raindrops. I greet the hollyhocks getting rain for their breakfast.

Water. The theme of the morning. Water on the outside and water on the inside. Sweat appeared on my skin with the brisk walk in the rain as we made our way back home through the neighborhood streets. We watched the lawn sprinklers turning on in the rain. What a funny sight.

More water. Back at the house I sang as I made a cup of hot water for tea. "Thank you, Grandmother Rain, for the beautiful morning!" Even more water now in the shower to clean up.

They say you have to wait only a couple of minutes in Colorado for the weather to change. I came out of the shower and heard no more pitter-patter. I looked outside and smiled. I could tell that Grandmother knew that I had finished my morning prayer and attitude adjustment.