Joy of the Day, Day 59: A Good Soaking

This morning I woke up to the sound of thunder and driving rain—so different from the quiet, misty drizzle I’ve become so used to, even in May, in our corner of the world. The week’s forecast had predicted an entire weekend of stormy weather, which seemed odd and unlikely just yesterday, as I surveyed sparkling, sunny sky. But then today, as though by some divine direction a switch was flipped to start it, the storm arrived exactly on cue.

Ever since I was small and can remember, I’ve loved thunderstorms. Where I grew up, in New Jersey, they always happened in summertime, and although occasionally and inconveniently they disrupted a picnic or some other outdoor plan, thunderstorms always felt like a special thing unto themselves. At night, the thunder was never frightening to me, but the opposite; when it woke me it was a comfort and a reminder of my haven—a bed to sleep in and a roof over my head—I was safe, warm, and dry.

And not just the thunder, but the rain around it, has always comforted me, and is a comfort to me still, even after living in a rainforest all these years. Intellectually, instinctively to the remaining English-major synapses firing in my brain, hard rain conjures a cleansing, a chance to take a breath, a break, and then begin anew.

When the storm began this morning, I took my coffee outside, under cover, to enjoy the smell and sound of it while considering the day ahead. This day—with all that’s unfolding in the world and weighing hard-edged and heavy on me, tempered to soft and inviting by the lucky, undeserved circumstances of my privileged life—feels like treasure to me. Every once in a while, it feels so good to cry, and to receive a thorough soaking.

Today, the thunder and the rain are my joy. #joyinplace

PS: I wrote this post first thing this morning, but given how today went in Seattle, I thought I might rewrite it—how could the simple joy of a thunderstorm be at all relevant, when people are burning and breaking our cities? But then I thought: no, joy is joy, and I’ll still take it where I find it, so decided to post what I’d written despite the crushing events that followed.