Rain Pain

“He loads the clouds with moisture; he scatters his lightning through them. At his direction they swirl around over the face of the whole earth to do whatever he commands them. He brings the clouds to punish men, or to water his earth and show his love.” Job 37:11-13


Rain. Rain. Wind and Rain. Possible tornadoes. Rain.

This past week has been a wet one. Gloomy clouds, soggy socks, and cold drips down my back. Day after day of the rain, along with 15 hours of no electricity yesterday has me thinking enough is enough! I’m ready for sunshine. I’m ready for a little heat. I’m ready for air that is not so thick with humidity that you can almost cut it with a knife. Remind me I said this in August.

Today I noticed that my garden has grown significantly while I’ve been in the house wallowing in rain misery. My potato plants seem to have doubled, and my baby tomatoes are almost the size of golf balls. While I’m complaining about the high humidity that makes me want to take a shower after being outside for five minutes, my lettuce dances the happy dance and makes a straight shot for the sky. While I’ve been covering my head with an umbrella, my corn plants have sprouted and stood as soldiers in the face of the storm. The pumpkins are sprouting. The squash vine is blooming. The blackberries are forming. Even the flowers of the pasture are beginning to show themselves. Plus, I haven’t had to water once.

So what do I have to complain about?

I like to complain about things I have no control over, like the weather. It’s always too hot, too cold, too dry, too wet, too sunny, too cloudy, too windy, too something. I’m pretty sure that no matter where I live, there would be something about the weather that would not appeal to me all of the time. During the winter, I contemplate moving to the equator. During the summer, I dream of 70 degree days, instead of 100. I’ve even heckled the weatherman on TV when he’s given a forecast that didn’t go along with what I thought would be ideal.

For therapy today, I went to my nearest home improvement garden center and purchased a few more flowers for planting. The soft ground made for easy shoveling, keeping me from complaining about manual labor. I added two rose bushes, an Indian Paintbrush, and some Impatiens. Maybe I can learn from their examples how to better weather the weather.

“He makes grass grow for the cattle, and plants for man to cultivate – bringing forth food from the earth: wine that gladdens the heart of man, oil to make his face shine, and bread that sustains his heart.” Psalm 104:14-15