Cloudy days and rain energize me. A sunny, clear-skied day drains me. I don’t know why, but I’ve always been this way. Scientifically speaking, it might have something to do with the ions released during thunderstorms, but it doesn’t really matter if I know the reason the way I am or not.

Even though I’m an only child myself, some of my best memories are connected with rain. I can vividly paint a picture of the time I was 10 or 12, laying on my bed staring out the window. It was raining and I could smell the warm, inviting smell of baking chocolate chip cookies from the kitchen. Another memory reminds me of elementary school where we were stuck in our classroom playing games because we couldn’t go outside for P.E. Those games were more fun to me than walking/running around the large field outside our temporary buildings by a long shot. Rainy days at home meant curling up with a good book and lap blanket on the couch. 

I even have a family legacy concerning rain and storms. My maternal grandmother was extremely terrified whenever there was a thunderstorm. She said she’d be happiest crawling under her bed than being even remotely near a window or a door looking out into the storm. However, she was determined that her children would not be so afflicted with fear concerning storms. She would gather all six of her children in front of her (so they would not see her shaking in her boots) at their front door, looking through the storm door and she would oooh and ahh at the lightning display outside, along with the sheets of rain blowing violently across the yard. All six of her children, as well as all twelve of her grandchildren all adore stormy weather. She kept that fear from becoming generational (or if it had been, she broke the cycle). What a heritage she gave us…in fact is still giving us, as my son, her great-grandchild is ecstatic over storms.

I loved the picture Tia painted in words earlier this week describing her boys swimming in a mud puddle. Rain and stormy weather should engender good memories and if possible, never any fear. Spring is definitely here and stormy weather has already started. As I write this, we have storms forecasted for tomorrow and it’s very windy today. If you are being inundated with rainy weather and cabin fever is becoming a real thing to you & yours, mix it up a bit. Have your child draw or paint a picture of what they see outside their window. Bring out a board game instead of doing some dry math facts drilling. Be like Tia and (if there is no danger of a lightning strike*) allow your children to go out and just be kids in the puddles. Stuck inside on a rainy day shouldn’t be a depressive memory for the future. Let loose a bit and enjoy the gray day—make hot chocolate and cuddle on the couch for some reading.

If you happen to be someone who is fearful when it comes to storms, brace yourself and grit your teeth, because although it’s an old saying, April Showers  do bring the May flowers (even if the showers come in March and the flowers arrive in April). When the stormy season arrives, Spring can’t be too far away.

Here’s what I’m already seeing in my driveway:

I hope you enjoy your stormy weather and know that whether you love it or hate it; if you wait long enough, the weather will be changing soon enough.

*Lightning strikes can happen after the storm is gone, even with clear skies. So if you hear thunder, be safe: stay indoors with your book and hot chocolate! 

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