Have you ever paused to watch and enjoy the rain? To hear the rhythmic pitter pat on the roof of your house and the leaves of the trees?
Okay, okay, I get it. Rain is an inconvenience. Rain messes up your plans. Rain gets you wet as you’re trying to dash from the house to the car to get where you need to go. Rain soaks you even more as you’re trying to get everyone and everything into the car and because of that you’re the last one in!
When you think that you are in control, rain can be a massive inconvenience.
And, when you go out in the rain, chances are that you’re going to get soaked at some point.
But what if you paused and started thinking differently about rain?
What if you started shifting your mindset?
What if you used rain as a reminder to slow your pace?
What if you used it as a way to refresh your soul?
As I sit here typing, the rain is playing a beautiful melody as it dances with the trees on it’s way to the ground. My family is on vacation in the mountains right now and I could look at this rainy day as a huge annoyance, a huge hindrance to the fun we are planning, a major bummer when all we want to do is be outside enjoying the glories of rocks and mountains and hiking to find waterfalls.
Yet, the plants need rain. The trees need rain. The earth needs rain. The creek and the rivers need the rain. The plants need the moisture to be able to make their food to continue to grow and flourish. But if it rained all the time, how could they survive those conditions?
On the other hand, if the sun shone all the time, where would the plants get their water from? How could these plants survive in those conditions? They couldn’t! If there was nothing but sun all the time, the pants and the ground would change drastically. The plants that you see now wouldn’t be able to survive in those conditions.
Just like the plants need a mixture of sun and rain, you, too need a mixture of sun and rain in your life.
You need the sunny days, those days where you are out and getting things done, sometimes going a mile a minute trying to pack as much as you can into a day. You need those times of activity.
Yet, you need the rainy days, those days that make you take a step back, pause, and take a deep breath. Those days when you refill your coffee and stand by the window just to watch and listen to the rain. To breathe in the calming, refreshing smell that it brings. To hear the pattern of its song and be mesmerized by it. Those days when you can stay home as much as possible. Those days when you get things done, but somehow the pace seems a bit slower, a bit more relaxed. Those days when you allow yourself the “guilty pleasure” of those extra long looks out the window.
How do you view your rainy days?
What do you do with your rainy days?
Do you view them as an annoyance to be overcome? Or as a welcome change to be embraced?
And as for us on vacation? I’m choosing to enjoy this rainy weather. I have my coffee next to me and the windows open so that I can hear and smell the rain as it dances through the trees. I’m enjoying the stillness, the quiet, the peace that the rain seems to bring to the woods. We’re choosing to have fun and celebrate the rain, knowing that we can go hiking once the rain stops.
What about you? What will you choose?
Additional Resources:
- Finding Perspective When You Feel You Have None
- It Takes Teamwork to Chase Sunsets
- 7 Ways to Pause and Gain Space in Our World of Chaos
- 25 Quotes to Bring Inspiration to Your Day
Elizabeth Tatham, founder of Inspiration in the Everyday, is a homeschooling momma of 5 who loves helping other homeschooling mommas create a unique homeschooling adventure your kids will love…without the overwhelm! Join in on the journey with 7 simple steps to make your homeschooling day go faster, easier, and with less tears here.