Lifestyle

Perfect Storm: Why You Really F*cking Love It When It Rains

by Lauren Martin
Stocksy

It’s the perfect day. It’s dark and windy with a bone-rattling chill in the air. The sky is menacing, with ominous clouds lurking over buildings and scurrying passersby. There are small drops of water slowly caressing your cheek, daintily, then rapidly transforming into hard-hitting pellets.

The hard pellets knock on the door and the windows, threatening to enter, shouting their vengeance. They bang loudly against the roof, warning you of the danger should you try and leave.

They make the ground cold and slick, turning the outside world menacing and dangerous. You lock yourself in your house, embracing the warmth of your blankets and candles, forced to spend the day in hiding. While the rest scorn it, you fall deep into it.

You fall deep into the tapping against the window, watching the water slide down the fogged glass. You fall into the warmth of your blankets and toasty bed. You fall into the dark, cold and stormy skies that are swirling right outside your enclosed cave.

After countless days of sunshine, it’s finally raining. After too many days forced to frolic in the nice weather and clear skies, you get a break. After forcing a smile for all those “perfect days,” you get to bask in true happiness. The weather is finally just the way you like it. The day is perfect; the day is yours.

It’s the kind of day fireplaces were made for. It’s the kind of day movies and books were made to thrive. It’s the kind of day soft blankets and warm cups of tea were invented for. It's the kind of day for dreamers.

It's for the brooding and the romantics -- the readers and philosophers. It's for the artists and the broken-hearted. It's for the soulful and the soulless. The people who enjoy the rain are the people who enjoy the silence. It's for those who have that rainy mood.

They are the kind who thrive under dim lights and long afternoons. They bask in creaky houses and find magic in everyday items. They love the rain because they love the enchanted world the rain brings.

You can explore another world

Rainy days are for mystery and magic; they are for hidden alcoves and secret libraries. They are for hours of reading and writing, transporting you into other worlds and times.

They are for movies that make you forget who you are and where you're from. They are for spending hours looking through old photo albums or exploring the forgotten drawers and closets of your room.

They are for walking around your home, seeing all the things you pass every day for the first time. It's when you reminisce about everything you've collected, the stuff that fills your house and the stories connected to every object you possess. It's only when you're forced to be inside that your mind can finally roam.

Because, for once, you don’t feel guilty

Finally, you can enjoy your movies and books the way they were meant to be enjoyed. You can watch your favorite films without the judging glare of the sun. You can bask in a novel alongside the soundtrack of the rain.

You can spend all afternoon inside, holed up with hot chocolate and bad TV, basking in the day that was meant for this. The way some people look up to the sky on a beautiful fall day, you look outside at the cascading drops of water and can't help but think how perfect everything is.

There’s nothing more beautiful than that sound

Is there any sound more beautiful than the pitter patter of rain on a window pane? That tap, tap, tapping noise that can be as comforting as your mother's embrace and as transportive as a lullaby.

For those who welcome the rain, its presence against the windows and walls is just a soothing reminder that you are not alone.

That sweet smell...

The way homemade chocolate chip cookies waft through the air, the rain's crisp sweet smell enters through open windows and unlocked doors. It has an energy to it, a pulse, and the smell is as invigorating as a good cologne. It's the kind of smell that makes you feel new and clean.

It's energizing, as if it contains a sort of magic that rejuvenates you and keeps you alive. Then there's that after-rain smell. When the last drops are lying on the grass, the puddles untouched on the concrete floors, wafting the smell that everyone so clearly recognizes as the scent of renewal.

That safe feeling

In the wide, open spaces of a sunny day, you feel exposed and vulnerable. In the dark and gloomy atmosphere of a good rain, you feel protected and warm. You are forced indoors under blankets and covers, bundling up again like a child.

You make your home your cave and envision your life as a hideaway. You see your room as a fortress, protecting you from the outside world. You no longer see your house as a place to rest your head, but a real home.

The idea of starting fresh

There's nothing that signifies a fresh start more than a good downpour. You can feel the destruction of the heavy drops, picking up the dirt and wiping it away.

It clears away all the built-up residue and stains that our presence so carelessly leave behind. It wipes the slate clean and feeds the earth. It reminds you that there is always a way to clear away the past.