The Miracle of Rain

- Part 1 in a Study of Contrasts - 

I woke up this morning to the pitter-patter of rain.  I couldn’t help but offer a cozy smile as I pulled the blankets over me just a little more.

There is something inherently so soothing about rain, especially here in Southern California where it has been in such short supply these days.

Just like the gentle breeze on a spring day invites us out, rain invites us in.

It invites me to cancel my morning bike ride and instead, rest.

It invites me to savor my morning coffee just a bit longer than usual, enjoying its warm contrast with the cool gray outside.

It invites me to breathe just a little bit deeper—to take a slight pause from my constant activity and just… be.

It is because of my love of rain that I sometimes wonder if I wasn’t supposed to live in the Pacific Northwest or something.

But as my wife likes to point out, I get restless after a few days of this, and the thought of several months of such weather might just be a little too much to handle.  It’s the weather that brings my sister in law to visit California each and every winter—for if she doesn’t her emotional well-being starts to match the weather and she prefers to allow a little sunshine into her January.

Which is interesting—when we are familiar with sunshine upon abundant sunshine, we celebrate rain.  And when all we know is rain day after day, we celebrate the sun’s breakthrough when it happens.

The rhythms of the weather sure tend to mimic the rhythms of life, don’t they?

Throw a little variety in the mix, and we sing and dance, we rest, we enjoy and savor the simple things like coffee, sunshine, rain, music.

But too much of one thing brings us into a state of bored monotony, regardless of the specific circumstances. 

And so I think part of the magic is embracing the rhythms, rather than fighting against them. 

Sure, I could have gone the gym and hopped on the exercise bike, passing the timeby switching my attention between Sportscenter on one TV, and the Republican Presidential candidates on the other, but today I chose to wrap my arms and my busyness around the pace of the day offered to me by the heavens instead.

I deliberately drove slower to work.  I even waved another car to go ahead of me at a four-way stop.  I think the driver didn’t know what to make of it, other than assume that I clearly was not from California.  We just don’t do that kind of thing around here.

When I got to work, I intentionally walked with a slower pace, allowing the sound of rain, rather than my own internal drive, to dictate my stride.

I took my time making a cup of coffee, am taking my time drinking it, making sure to take time to breathe, to pray, to exhale, and to allow my body to slow down.

I am grateful for the rain.  For it invites me to take a pause, to spend some time inward, and to rest and exhale for a bit.

For now, I’ll end this with a pause, for that’s my encouragement for the day: take a minute or two to be still, to listen, to savor, and to slow down.

For I am convinced that it’s vital to the soul.