It's Another Rainy Day

The wind was confused today. It didn't know which way to blow. First it blew from the east...then it blew from the west. It would have been fine on a dry and sunny day. But no..it blew vigorously on a very wet and rainy day. It's a good thing I had my trusty green Fibrella umbrella--the type that doesn't blow inside out so easily. It protected my head, but I arrived at the office soaked to the knee. Now my jeans are still wet and my toes are frozen.


But don't get me wrong. I like the rain, even if it gets me all wet. I've never complained about the rain before. There's something about the rain that comforts me and sooths me. It does something to me that the sun cannot. Sunny days and clear blue skies make me cheerful and elated. But the rain can reach out and touch the part of my heart that the sun cannot. I don't know how. Maybe it's steady rhythm of the rain. Maybe it's the soothing sound on the roof...or the way millions of droplets hit the ground and look like tiny silver crowns. It makes me feel melancholy, sober, yet happy and content. 


When I was a little girl, I would play in the rain with my siblings. A lot of people thought that the rain would make us sick. It never did. We liked the feel of the cold drops on our warm skin. We would run around our backyard, just trying to get soaked. There were times when my brother was not content with the rain. He still liked to get a hose and spray us with water. That used to start a water fight. Sometimes, we would take advantage of the free water and wash the family car in the rain. 


To a lot of people, the rain was a lullaby. The sound would invite most people to oversleep or just stay in bed. But not for me. The rain was like my alarm clock. It awoke all sorts of feelings within me. That's why on a rainy day, I like to sit at my desk and just write something--anything. My journals would be filled more quickly during monsoon season.


I've also had a lot of adventures in the rain. My country doesn't have an excellent drainage system. And I tell you..when it really pours, the streets become rivers. I was about 9 years old when my family and I had to leave the car in the parking lot and wade in the flood to get home. It would have been fun for a kid, but the black water made it seem as if a dead rat was going to float any minute. But I really was an adventurous girl. I even thought typhoons were interesting and not scary. My brother and I liked to go out after a big storm and take photos of the aftermath. 

The rainbow after the rain. It appeared just behind
our office building. I was out for a walk during dinner
break. The sight of it took my breath away. 

Last year was my biggest adventure when I was stranded in the city for 2 days because of the super typhoon that caused quite a disaster in Metro Manila. My brother had the thrill of wading in the muddy waters up to his chest to get home. Abandoned cars were strewn all over the highway--like in a Hollywood disaster movie. But I was comfortably stranded in a hotel, with the convenience of the mall right next to it. Many lives were lost that day--just because it rained too much. But you know what? A day after the big storm, I saw something that made my heart swell. I was walking down the street and I looked up. There it was. A beautiful rainbow--like a colorful promise in the sky. It was a reminder of hope--a reminder of God's promise that He would never destroy the earth with a flood again.  




A lot of people frown when they see cloudy skies. But we need the rain just as much as the sun. Someone once said that life is like the rainbow...you need both the sun and the rain to make its colors appear.


Now, it's still drizzling a bit. My clothes are still wet. But I'm ok. I have a cup of coffee to keep me warm. And there's always that rainbow to look forward to.