Rain

It’s been a rainy summer where I live, but for the moment there are advantages to that.

I went for a walk with a friend last week, and I made a list of all the advantages of walking in the rain.

1. you save on suntan lotion
2. you don’t see too many other people. Like, no other people, because no one else is fool enough to walk in the rain
3. you learn about what birds and animals do in the rain. We saw a fox out hunting, oblivious. Birds sang, oblivious. A mountain goat was grazing on the path. None of these we would have seen if there had been a ton of people. The fox we saw while hiding under a rock waiting for an electrical storm to die down. (Before I hear about how you shouldn’t hide under rocks, it was the best option. There were many rocks and we weren’t the highest thing in the landscape so we weren’t particularly attractive for lightening strikes.)
4. One thing I know from living a bit higher up is that the clouds change constantly in the mountains with bad weather. It’s beautiful, sometimes menacing, but always changing.
5. You appreciate things like warm showers and hot meals so much more.
6. You can test your rain gear for holes, and be happy if you don’t find any.
7. You remember, pertinently, what you forgot to bring for the rain. I only forgot the water proof mittens that I can slip my gloves under. In the beginning, it was warm and I didn’t even need gloves, but later, when I did, it’s hard to get wet gloves on and off sometimes.
8. You can test your hiking shoes on wet rocks. Mine did really well, so that’s good news.
9. You learn about all the features for radar on your phone. I was able to tell when we should keep walking and when we should hide out for a bit and let the worst pass.
10. The biggest advantage is that you can go back and do the same hike, because you didn’t see anything.

I’m back from my hike now, and have to study, and that’s another advantage. It’s easier to spend a summer day inside studying when it’s raining, and Foro can keep me company all day long.