drip drip drop hear the rain drops falling

first off... if you can quote the title to the appropriate movie, then you get major kudos :)

i did something i never do today. i sat on the porch and watched it rain. it was cleansing and refreshing and everything you expect a rain shower to be without actually realizing it is. how many times do you enjoy the rain? i mean, if you are at the beach or looking for a reason to have a lazy afternoon nap or experiencing a severe drought, sure the rain is a good thing... but if you are on your way home from a long week's worth of work or carrying in a trunk full of groceries or needing to take the kids to the pool, rain really isn't enjoyable.

i was sitting with an old friend during this shower (a friend who has shared a lifetime of memories with me and has learned to read me like only my mother can... but she is not "old" haha) and we were talking about everything and nothing at the same time... are those not the best conversations ever?!? the comment was made "the rain showers of our lives can be refreshing, too." now, i know i just made mention of the inconveniences of the weathering rain... the precipitation in liquid form that slickens the pavement and saturates the dirt... semi-colon however comma do you see the rainy days of your emotional/mental/spiritual life as inconvenient? do you get out your umbrella and run for shelter with the wicked witch's mindset of melting?

when i was 10, i went to a week long, over-night, diabetes camp. wednesday mid-day *if my memory serves correctly :)* the heavens dumped water on that camp like i had never ever ever seen... huge puddles and mudslides... it was awesomely destructive! the campers and counselors ran for their cabins... and stayed there... for 15 minutes... what fun is it to stay inside all afternoon? none, i will answer that for you-- it is no fun!!! we shed our shoes and ran around with mud between our toes... we made our own slip-n-slides out of earth... we completely ruined our clothes... and had a blast.

it probably wasn't all that fun (we have a tendency to embellish our memories to make them reflect the attitude we want to have when we look back... crazy) but i have fond memories of that day in the rain. actually, a lot of my best memories come from rainy days... camp, ballgames, running around my backyard in my underwear *small child, small neighborhood, no harm done* rain isn't a bad thing when you are little...

you know when it gets to be a bad thing... when it turns from a reliever into a depressor? do you know? when adults ruin it... hahah :) when they tell you you can't play in the rain without getting a cold... when they say you can't swim in the rain *not lightning* when they make you get out your umbrella to walk into walmart... when they run to escape... when rain becomes a punishment......... and then we start to avoid the rain. we worry about our clothes being discolored or our hair being disheveled or something else completely superficial. it becomes the gray days that sadden so many. it creates headaches. it depresses moods across the world.

but rain is a good thing. it is meant to be enjoyed, i think. beyond the environmental reasons for rain completing its cycle in falling to the earth, there is a larger life lesson hidden in the drops of water that polka dot the sidewalks. rain. when has your life been rainy?

it is not human nature to smile when recalling the rainy seasons of our lives. there is no way to fake a joyful heart when giant "rain" drops have doused the small flame on your hope candle. i understand and empathize with those emotions because i have been there. on the other hand, there is today's little life lesson...

life flourishes in the rain. rain enables life to prosper. rain allows the dirt to rinse away. rain- a natural refresher and cleanser. there is this song (don't worry, i'm not going to link it or tell you how it relates to my walk with God) "i'm gon dance in the rain" and then there is the "singin in the rain" saga and there is the "healing rain" song and there are even more positive rain illustrations...

i would imagine the most well known rain song is one we all grow up singing "rain, rain go away." when is the rain supposed to come back? *if you don't say "come again another day" you may need to revisit pre-school* when is "another day" convenient for rain? do we have to be completely dried up before we notice our lack of fresh water? do we need inches of muck and grime clogging our pores before we attempt a bath? (these are our spiritual states here, not the physical... ps) but honestly, if we try to avoid the rain, i don't think we will ever be "clean."

so the next time the rain clouds move in your way, put away your galoshes and yellow rain coat and go dance in the rain. learn from the rain drops... let them wash you off... appreciate the cleansing. dance in the real rain, too :)