Listen to the Rain

I can hear the rain falling gently outside. It comes softly down and down through the boughs of the pines until it reaches a ground carpeted by the recently fallen oak leaves. And the sound of each drop is muffled by their wet softness there. A thousand, ten thousand drop in a moment make barely a whisper. It is as if the world is offering up a quiet sigh. And there is a peace to it.

I could sit for hours and listen to the rain. To breath in the freshness of it all. To feel the giving of it all. Life is water. That is no metaphor, it is simply a truth. Without water we all will die. And so in these moments is it mortality I feel? I am not sure. But I take a deep breath and feel renewed, alive, special in that I can slow down long enough to be truly alive, aware in this moment.

I want to see more clearly the moments that matter. See that taking time to cook a meal matters. Not for the mere sustenance, but for the offering of myself to others. See that knitting a scarf, or painting a picture, offering a sentence of beauty, or any other thing that I do, that I share is good. See that taking a walk and seeing nature is good for my soul. See what I do in the world, giving a helping hand to another, being kind, sharing myself, doing the right thing when it is hard. All of it matters.

And so in this holiday season, I will try to refocus. Not on the things and the stuff and the trimmings that sparkle and twinkle, but on the people. Not on the gifts, but on the giving. I will write a note of caring and take the time to put it in an envelope, not because I must out of some peer pressured holiday guilt. No, I will do so because I hope when my friends and loved ones open that envelope I will have made their lives better. It does not matter our religion, our beliefs in any God, what matters is our hearts, our human hearts and the good that is in them. I want to remember what makes us the same, rather than what makes us different.

It is the season, for love and caring. And that can be difficult in trying times when the world seems out of control with worry, hate and fear. But I will try to offer what I can to make the caring for others, for doing good the thing. I will take the time to listen to the rain and be renewed in love.


Cross posted on Pictures, Poetry & Prose for the Tis the Season prompt.