On the west coast of British Columbia, and Vancouver Island in particular, we expect to have rain. We have gum boots, rain coats and pants, umbrellas, waterproof everything - or we get wet and don't mind so much. In my case, going for a walk in the rain means dressing accordingly. My companion Buster the dog gets his curly hair wet and shakes it off and gets a good towelling when we get home.
Over this past summer, from May 1st to the end of August, we had almost no rain, we had severe water restrictions, brown grass and dying gardens, dirty cars and lots of dust, all very unusual. This was brought on by changing weather patterns, including no snow pack in our mountains - the snow pack we depend upon to give melt-water in the spring and summer to keep water levels in lakes, rivers and reservoirs topped up.
For the past week we have had rain again, and it has refreshed us all - people, gardens, animals, forests and streams. Luckily, where I live, our rain was steady and had time to soak in rather than run off the concrete-hard surface of the ground. So every night, and during every day, some rain fell, and the plants in the garden stood up and breathed again, the ground softened, and the dust was washed off. Aaahh!! back to near normal.
We here in my part of the world have taken rain for granted, cursed it often, prayed for it occasionally, but really haven't appreciated it as much as we obviously should. Until it wasn't available we paid little attention to it. Sure, we would listen to the weather reports to plan long weekends and special occasions, but mostly the weather just happened. I think, after this summer of drought, more of us will give the rain and what it offers us more deference. I think we will be happier for it and not grumble about it so much. Some of us will even try to save some for "non-rainy" days in the future.
Water is so precious and for those of us who have given it little thought, this dry summer has reminded us that there are huge areas of the world, and millions of people who live there, where our rain would be a miracle. So best we remember that and use our precious gift with more appreciation! no more "rain rain go away, come again another day" - you can stay around for awhile now!