Rain, Rain....stay and play!

What does a rainy day mean to you? Is it a gloomy day? Or do you view it as a nice, cozy chance to curl up on the couch with a good book? How about stormy nights? I find thunderstorms after dark are exciting for me…with the crack of lightning and the boom of thunder. I actually prefer the sights and sounds of a good, powerful thunderstorm to any fireworks display I’ve ever seen.

Last night, a great storm rolled in. My oldest son was already asleep, but my youngest had not quite fallen asleep. My little guy was, naturally, frightened by the thunder and blinding lightning. I climbed onto his bed and sat, holding his hand, while he tried to fall asleep. Every time the thunder would boom and rumble overhead I just gave him the biggest smile and told him he was safe. He would grin back at me. After a while, he drifted off to sleep in the midst of the chaos outside our home.

There is another kind of rain that I love. Have you ever experienced a day during the summer when it is sunny and bright outside but then it suddenly starts to pour down rain? We have days here in this part of the world where we receive a deluge of rain from the sky while the sun is still shining! It doesn’t happen often, but when it does it is awesome. On those days, I like nothing better than to walk outside and just stand in the rain. Yes, clothes and all. It is such a refreshing, cleansing feeling to feel the warmth of the sun and the force of the heavy raindrops at the same time! And every drop is lit up by the sun...drops of liquid light...one of my favorite experiences here on Earth.

So, imagine this person who loves rain…who never wants to use an umbrella…who actually craves getting rained on…marrying a person who dislikes the rain and who always wants an umbrella. My poor husband, when we were dating, would try to be chivalrous and dash out of the car and around to the passenger side with an umbrella to protect me. Too often, though, I would jump out of the car before he could get to me and say something along the lines of, "I just LOVE the rain, don’t you?" To which he would reply, "NO!" Over the years we’ve learned to accept each other’s differing opinions of the rain…but there was a time when I couldn’t understand his use of an umbrella, and he couldn’t understand my refusal to use one! I’ve learned that I am most definitely in the minority when it comes to the umbrella issue.

So, jump ahead several years to today. My husband and I have two wonderful sons. My oldest son has been taking enrichment classes at a local university this week. The weather all week has been sunny and hot. Today, however, we have lots of rain. When I pulled up to the drop-off area at the university, I saw all of the staff standing, dutifully, in the rain with umbrellas. Waiting to usher the children across campus with their metal and nylon appliances of dryness…trying to shield the kids from any unwanted drips and drops of water falling from the Heavens. I sighed. My son had asked me to walk with him to his class this morning, which I was happy to do. But now I was faced with the reality of my "abnormal" way of thinking. I asked if they wanted to use an umbrella and both boys yelled, "Yes!" So, I grabbed an umbrella from the van and prepared to look "normal" in front of all of the other moms, staff, and students. To add insult to injury, the umbrella – while a very nice one – happened to be huge! I think it must be a golf umbrella or something. Now, I will have to admit that it must have looked quite comical the way I was trying to hold this giant thing above three bodies…two of which both wanted to hold the umbrella on their own and at the same time were fighting over where to position themselves in our little group. We started across the campus at a painfully slow pace, fussing and quarreling the whole way. Then, my oldest dashes out in front of us...out from under the colorful, protective canopy on a stick. All of a sudden his face just lights up. It dawns on him that standing in the rain is kind of fun. He starts giggling and running and having a grand time. Younger son, witnessing this strange behavior of his older brother's, decides to try it, too. "Well, what do you know?" he seems to be thinking, "This is fun." And where am I left? I am left holding the umbrella. I’m not sure if I should cave in to the world's rules, scold the boys, and tell them they must adhere to the socially mandated guidelines of rain safety. A staff member passes us and tells my oldest son he should get back under his mother's umbrella. What to do? What to do?!?

I closed the umbrella and joined my boys.

Rain is fun. Life is short.

Why be normal?