A walk in the rain

It rained today and I did the obvious thing to do when the clouds release their burden – took a walk in Phoenix Park. I had my big, black Wellies on and brought my torn umbrella, which by this stage is a cheap excuse for protection. I might as well have put a garbage bag over my head.

I enjoy taking walks in the rain, everything seems so different. There’s less people stressing about on the street, the air is fresher, the grass and trees are greener and the ground smells of hot earth. It’s like everything is taking a short break, or a deep breath, regaining what was forgotten about in the hot spring sun.

Even the blackbird sings louder when it rains, or it might just be that there’s fewer cars on the street.

Walking in the rain gives me a place to rest my thoughts. In the rain your senses become so busy experiencing things, the smell, the noise, that you forget about that long list of things you have to do or how worried you are about not getting a job over the summer. Instead you suddenly realise how f*cking great life actually is! – pardon my language but there’s no other adequate way of saying it.

The same thing always happen to me. I realise how lucky I am to have so many genuine friends and to have met a few that I even consider a part of my family. How lucky I am being healthy and sound; being raised, supported and believed in by my parents. I realise how fantastic it is to be able to love and laugh and how it is really worth the occasional heartache.

How I’m fortunate to be able to hear the raindrops on my umbrella, to smell the hideous stank from outside a fast food restaurant as I pass it on the way back. How fortunate I am to taste the bitterness of the coffee this morning because I didn’t use enough water in the coffee maker. How fortunate I am to be able to tell people around me how much I appreciate them.

I must confess, I jumped in a pool of water on the side of the road – a really big one. The water splashed all the way up to my knees and into my Wellies, a wonderful mix of water and leaves and sand, and who knows what. I felt like a happy 4-year-old, probably looked like one too, with a big, fat smile on my face.

I am fortunate and thankful to be able to waste 2 hours on walking in the rain, for no reason at all.