rain makes you better

The thunderstorms outside matched the storms inside my person. 

My original plan today was "Do not pass go, do not collect $200, stay in bed." Which worked out fabulously until we needed milk. And then Justin said, "Can you go get some ice cream too?" I begrudgingly swapped my pj pants for jeans and went out in the rain.

I always forget how good rain is.

It reminds me of summers dancing on the sidewalk with my cousins, running up and down in the puddles collecting in the driveway. All the chalk washed down the pavement, our hopscotch games and rainbows all a distant memory. I'm an advocate for dancing in the rain, but there always comes a point where you get too cold. My favorite part is always the hot shower and warm blankets afterward. 

It reminds me of days spent waiting under the shelter at the pool. If there was no lightening in 10 minutes, we could swim in the rain until our parents came to get us. My cousins and I used to hang out on the playground equipment if we didn't feel like going home yet. We played many a game of "I Hear Wood Chips!" on that slippery jungle gym and went home for dinner soaked to the bone, but happy. 

It reminds me of all the best water fights I've ever had. When I was a kid, I used to do community theater. Our last cast party of the kids show was always a water fight. The first time it happened, we used garden hoses and buckets. Anything was fair game. By 2007, we had super soakers and water balloons and a thunderstorm decided to make the mud puddles all the better for sliding in. It was the best way to kiss one of my favorite childhood traditions goodbye with some of the people who still remain super close to me. 

It reminds me of living on the top floor of Turner House at SCAD and using my camera to get all the good bokeh behind the raindrops in the city lights. It reminds of nights spent in the laundry room, listening to the rain and people out on smokers bridge while I studied for art history and waited for my clothes. It reminds me of the night we found a palmetto bug in my dorm room and killed it with hairspray and my roommates 6-inch silver heels. 

It reminds me of the first week Justin and I met. He walked me to work in the rain one morning and kissed me goodbye at Adrian's back door. I remember counting down the minutes because rainy days are always slow in the frozen custard business. I couldn't wait for dry socks, a warm bed, and to be with the boy who loves me. 

Today the rain reminded me that storms are good. Storms bring change and greener grass, bigger flowers and the best sunsets if you time it just right. Today was the best day I have had in the last two weeks. And I have rain to thank for it.