WHEN FIRST I LOOKED out at my backyard this morning I thought it was the sprinkler from yesterday’s watering that left telltale signs of rainfall. However, it did, indeed, rain last night and according to weather reports will continue to do so sporadically throughout the next few days. This is true not only for the Lower Mainland but also in more fire prone regions such as Williams Lake and Salmon Arm. Looks like thunderstorms are also possible today throughout the province. Hopefully flashes of lightning will not ignite parched grasses and dry timber as we ease into damper cooler weather. Sipping freshly brewed coffee from the washed coffee cup I left outside overnight, I reflected on how I love the West Coast rain and can tolerate a lot of the misty-gray mud-making stuff. Not everyone enjoys the rainy season when it starts ... and a longing for more sun less cloud usually begins in fall.
Lamenting about the weather is common because it rarely seems just right. The ideal is balance, as with most things in life. It’s all good if not in excess. As essayist John Ruskin once wrote: Sunshine is delicious, rain is refreshing, wind braces us up, snow is exhilarating; there is really no such thing as bad weather, only different kinds of good weather.
It's like washing the car -- if you water the yard, it will rain that night. If we could just get everyone in dry areas to wash their cars on the same day, I'm sure it will rain and douse all the forest fires.
ReplyDeleteWould be lovely if it really worked? But of course it wouldn't. Hard to believe BC is having a particularly dry summer when we on the desert of the prairie are having a particularly wet one. The rain is falling, just not in the right place.
Climate change in Alberta, global warming in BC... okay, instead of car-washing, we need to get everyone to switch to solar power...
No, there will always be gas-guzzlers, there will probably always be coal-burners somewhere. We have a beautiful country, but what are we leaving to our grandchildren?
Ha … ha … I loved your mass car-washing analogy. There is a kind of Murphy’s Law to this, isn’t there? When it comes to weather, I guess we can only predict that it will be unpredictable.
ReplyDeleteI think sometimes how the earth's needs and our pleasure sometimes come temporarily into conflict. When I am on holiday, the hot, sunny days are perfect for enjoying the ocean and beach, but not so great for the moisture-starved plants and trees. But, on work days, or when pressing indoor projects call, a walk (or bike ride) in the rain invigorates and sweetens the indoor time. Your John Ruskin quote says it beautifully:)
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