SoCS & JusJoJan – A Rainy Day

Today’s post is a combination SoCS and a JusJoJan (rules here) post, both hosted by the lovely and talented Linda Hill. Check out Linda’s place to get the scoop on SoCS and check out all the great responses.

Today’s prompt is as follows:

Your prompt for #JusJoJan and Stream of Consciousness Saturday is: “a rainy day.” Write about the first thing that comes to mind when you think of the phrase “a rainy day.” Enjoy!

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🎶 Listen to the rhythm of the falling rain…🎶

Remember that song by the Cascades? I love the rain.

I live in the foothills of the Blue Ridge mountains but I grew up in a small valley nestled between three mountains. I loved (and still love) a gentle mountain rain. The kind you get caught in that slowly soaks you from head to toe. The kind of rain that comes on a warm summer day or urges the leaves off the trees in the fall. It is the nostalgic rain that lulls you into a place of good memories and fond thoughts.

I remember so well sitting on the porch at my grandmother’s and watching the rain fall. My sisters and I would lean over the porch wall and ‘wash’ our hair in the rain.

I remember a first kiss on a summer day when soft drops of rain fell from a seemingly cloudless sky. Maybe the first kiss of young love should always be reserved for a warm summer rain.

I remember swimming in the creek and seeing the rain start to move across the mountain. We ran hard to outrun the rain even though we were already as wet as could be.

I remember going home as an adult and deciding to take a walk. “It looks like rain” my dad called out to me. Soon the sky opened up and I took shelter on the porch of an abandoned house. It wasn’t long until I saw my father’s car. He came to save me. It wasn’t the first time he had rescued me. I miss him.

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Random Thoughts About Rain

My daughter calls me every weekday on her drive to work. It is a lovely time, uninterrupted, when we talk about the simple things going on in our respective lives. This morning when she called I was sleeping peacefully with the sound of gentle rain hitting the roof.

It’s funny. I woke up around 5:00 am – it was not raining then. I found a YouTube video with rain sounds – several actually – hoping they might lull me back to sleep. Instead, I found so them patterned and unrealistic I turned my phone off. When it started to rain, I fell asleep easily.

I am always so thankful for the rain, especially knowing so many people are suffering through extreme temperatures and droughts. Then, on the other side of the world, there is too much rain to the extent it is damaging and life-threatening.

Before she passed away, my mother-in-law’s townhome flooded three or four times. She was devastated each and every time and started to fear the rain. We always felt the flooding was due to overdevelopment and inadequate drainage by the city. They eventually acquired a grant through FEMA and bought all the property at less than market value. Mom was able to get the check and deposit it, but it came too later for her.

I may have mentioned this before, but when we were young, we often hung our heads over the porch knee wall and ‘washed’ our hair in the rainwater (All we actually did was get our hair wet!)

The birds love coming to the feeders in the rain. They look pitiful with their feathers all wet. Sometimes they take this opportunity to bathe in the birdbath then fluff their feathers in an attempt to dry them out. There is something renewing about a constant and gentle rain.

I hope wherever you are, you are enjoying beautiful and normal weather. I am tempted to go back upstairs and nap while I can still hear the rain on the roof.

One Liner Wednesday – Rainy Days

It seemed like a good idea to do my laundry on rainy days, but discovered I don’t enjoy doing laundry that often!

It’s raining again today. The plants are loving it, but it has put a damper on my outdoor activities. One might think this is a cruel April Fool’s joke that our temps are going to drop back into the low 30° degree range over the next few days.  No garden planting yet!

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One liner Wednesday is brought to us each week by the lovely Linda Hill. Please visit Linda’s blog to read the rules, read other one liners, and possibly join in the fun!

One Liner Wednesday – It’s Raining

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“I’ve learned that you can tell a lot about a person by the way they handle these three things: a rainy day, lost luggage, and tangled Christmas tree lights.”
Maya Angelou

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One Liner Wednesday is brought to us each week by Linda Hill. Check out Linda’s blog to see what others have to say with just one line.

Mindfullness

Day 33

We had to leave home early today to take my car for service. It’s an import, so no one in my little town works on them. The drive down takes about an hour and hubby follows me down since the service takes a good part of the day. We usually have scheduled errands or appointments that take up the day, but today was not one of those days. After we dropped the car off we had a late breakfast and decided to spend the day just going where the wind blew us.

The Drive

The drive down was a little precarious. We ran into some heavy rain and wind. As I drove I watched the wind whip through the trees. A lot of the leaves fell from the trees making me thankful we took Sunday to drive the Parkway for the last time this year. I would imagine in a few days, much of the color will be turning a rusty orange and fall will slowly inch toward winter.

Even with the rain, the view was beautiful. The road has small hills and valleys and lots of curves. In the valleys, the temperature combined with the humidity to create a beautiful steamy fog in some places. I kept thinking about how lucky I was to be there in this moment to experience the drive. The leaves on the ground were wet and reflective like glass. So beautiful in their simplicity.

People

Today I saw several people who had very blank expressions. I am a people watcher and try to be cautious I do not make people nervous. The few times people caught my eye I simply smiled and their face lit up and the returned the smile. I love it when that happens. We can all spend so much time internalizing and turning inward, it’s nice when we let our guard down.

We spent some time ‘window shopping’ at the mall. I bought a latte at Starbucks to sip while we looked through a few of the stores. A beautiful woman working behind the makeup counter at one of the department stores commented about how good the coffee looked. We chatted for a moment, she told me she was returning to Atlanta tonight — going home. She seemed genuinely happy at the thought.

Giving Thanks

Today I gave thanks for so many things that crossed my path. The rain, the people, the sky and little messages I received throughout the day. I read a heartfelt message from my daughter which made me so thankful that my children are in such a good place. They love each other dearly which is what I always hoped for. Siblings that are there for each other when things get tough are a godsend.

We have such a wonderful blended family and that is such a blessing to me. We all enjoy each other’s company and spending time together is always fun. We have started to make plans for Thanksgiving and a few events in December so the season is already getting off to a good start.

Listening

I am so thankful today that I can be here when people need someone to talk to. I have had several friends and family with heart wrenching situations this past week. To be here as a shoulder or a friend or a confidant makes us all feel better. I was always a better listener than a talker, so perhaps it is just part of my reason for being here. Regardless, I am thankful that we can be here for one another.

Today has been about mindfulness. Observing my environment. Connecting with people and giving thanks. Days like this make me realize that none of us are ever intended to travel this life alone. It took so little to gain so much today. I am so grateful. Every day, no matter where we are or what tasks lie ahead, there is much to be mindful of.

“People usually consider walking on water or in thin air a miracle. But I think the real miracle is not to walk either on water or in thin air, but to walk on earth. Every day we are engaged in a miracle which we don’t even recognize: a blue sky, white clouds, green leaves, the black, curious eyes of a child—our own two eyes.
All is a miracle.”
Thich Nhat Hanh