and as the unseasonable heavy rains and storms continue today, i am reminded of a wonderful event a few summers back. i was with my family at a large amusement park. it was beautiful out, without a cloud in the sky and we walked around, like most other people that day, staying within our group, enjoying the park and enjoying the day. suddenly, without much warning, the sky grew very dark and raindrops began to fall. as the rain became heavier, people began to take shelter under whatever they could find, planning to wait it  out. 

within minutes, the rain became quite out of control, with an onslaught of hard, sideways, piercing water. it was relentless. and  it quickly became obvious that it was useless to even attempt to stay dry. little by little, everyone began to come out from under their makeshift ‘shelters’, take off wet shirts, and shoes and whatnot, and just fully immerse themselves in the rain, some literally laid in it, as the ground fiooded so quickly, like a warm and wild jacuzzi. there was really no choice but to surrender to it all, and people began to openly laugh and jump and play and dance and embrace the rain. strangers bonded together in full laughter and in this the sudden unexpected experience they had absolutely no control over. all ages, all sizes, all genders, all colors, all human.

after a few more minutes of this, the clouds and the rain moved on, as suddenly as they had arrived, and the sun came back out, bright and yellow, signaling a return to calm. the only clues that it was all real, were the water on the ground, people’s soaked clothing and hair, and the smiles on their faces. soon, people stopped playing, wrung out their clothes, got back in their groups, and walked on. as if it had never happened. it was the highlight of my day.

The best thing one can do when it’s raining is to let it rain. – Henry Wadsworth Longfellow