Good morning! I hope the world is being good to you and you’re being good to it.

Grab your coffee or beverage of choice and share a thought with me.

At the risk of sounding like too much of an old man, I’ve really come to appreciate a good rain. If the rain comes as part of a booming thunderstorm, all the better. Sure, I’ll say my share of, “We really needed this,” or, “It’s really coming down”, but it’s not because I’m thinking about the crops (not my crops, I don’t have crops, but somebody does and I’m sure they needed rain). I want others to share in my appreciation for precipitation, which I’ve had an unacknowledged and evolving connection with throughout my lifetime.

As a kid, rain meant I got out of having to mow, at least until the next day or whenever my dad made some passing comment along the lines of, “Sure dried up fast out there”. If there happened to be a youth baseball game I was feeling particularly unenthusiastic about, a good rain could be my savior. In college, my roommate used thunderstorms as an excuse to throw on Tim Burton’s Batman and make a grilled cheese sandwich. Why? It should be obvious they’re the perfect combination of dark and moody and cozy comfort food – the quintessential thunderstorm pairing. Now, as the maintainer of a lawn, I appreciate the rain helping keep my hard work (don’t misread as “meticulous”) green. I don’t like having to go to the sprinklers, and I won’t lie, there’s still a big part of me that enjoys having an excuse to procrastinate when it comes to mowing. Plus, I think there’s an amalgamation of all those past memories that comes out when that pitter patter of little droplets starts.

While the world is getting a spritz, there is something soothing about the enveloping sounds of the water hitting all around and above you while clouds overhead bellow rolling rumbles. The immersion from this kind of real-life surround sound can’t be beat. Once the rain is done, step outside and take a deep breath. That petrichor, that purest aroma of freshness, has to be one of the best smells this world can provide.

Too much rain can cause problems, and never-ending storms are a quick way to ruin a summer. It’s important to find appreciation in the sunny and dreary. They both serve a purpose and have their value. Bright warm days are easy to enjoy. The real challenge is finding your Batman and grilled cheese counterpart.