An Opposite Perception

They say rain symbolizes sadness. One of the reasons for such a perspective is because rain itself feels like the tears that people shed when they feel immense sadness. But on the other hand, interpretation is in the eye of the beholder. For one, it can feel like it symbolizes sadness, but for another, it can feel like maybe the rain is in the process of cleansing the earth from its’ filth and dirt and making sure that the nutrients are provided for everything that breathes and has life, including us humans. 

For me? I think that my emotions lay on the latter rather than the former. As it turns out, the opposite perception about something can really turn its’ heels on someone’s life if you’re lucky enough to experience one. I was fortunate enough to experience said things, and here I am right now, with a cup of coffee and a good notebook to write in. As I watched the rain and heard the raindrops making their way to wet the ground, I realized that I had turned my attention to the rain completely, and if I was able, maybe I would sing “Good Morning,” that song from the movie, Dancing in the Rain.

Then I saw an umbrella dancing its way to the café that I was at currently, a familiar cool pink umbrella that I had the honor of knowing for the last year or so. When the owner of said umbrella made her way to the café and the door opened with that familiar ring, she made her way to me and just stared at me until I had acknowledged her presence. 

“Hey stranger, I hope you’re not looking at another woman,” she said with a warm smile. 

I took my eyes off my notebook and looked up at her with another smile, “Hey there, beautiful, how are you doing?”

She blushed. It’s been, what, 25 years? Still? She cupped my cheeks and laid her delicate lips on it, making me blush, “See? You blush the same way after 25 years too.” 

She smirked and I sighed, shaking my head, “You have me lost for words, ma’am, welcome,” I pulled out the chair next to mine for her and she sat down, ordering a cup of coffee herself. She leaned against me, humming, “So what were you thinking when you were staring outside? Another girl?” She wagged her eyebrows, and I denied such claims with a well-practiced sigh.

“Nope. I was thinking about the rain, and how it matched my situation now with you and the kids.” I stated plainly. 

The look on her face indicated that she didn’t know how to react: Should she be mad? Or should she be flattered? She pursed her lips into a sentence, “Should I be happy about that? You know that people have a tendency of interpreting rain as tears and rain.” 

I chuckled and looked fondly at her. I took her hand and caressed it, “You know what I mean. I thought so too, but when I met you, it felt like God was showering me with rain for my dry heart when I met you. So, you know…” I trailed off and her eyes widened, looking at me. 

“What?” She asked curiously. 

“Anytime I look at rain, or have to run in the midst of it, I calm down and smile, because I know that rain in the real world does the same. It’s a nuisance, but doesn’t it feel like the rain is cleansing the world from all its filth and filling its most basic needs?” I earnestly asked. 

My wife looked at me with a questionable look until her eyes started to water, “Am I really that kind of being to you? So much that you think of me as rain in a barren land or purifying the earth?” 

I nodded, without hesitation, because that’s what it was. I know I thank her everyday, and I believe that I tell her this every time it rains, but still, it warms my heart to see that nothing has changed since we met in junior high. I leaned against her silence, enjoying the moments that I’m enjoying with her. 

“Day by day, even though there may be troubles, I always thank that you, the rain in my heart, which purified and filled me came into my life through such coincidence.” I smiled at her, and I saw that her face hadn’t changed for the time we’ve been together. 

She smiled back, “You look exactly as you did twenty years ago. You know that’s providence in the form of coincidence.” 

I laughed, and she laughed with me as we enjoyed our beverages as they came out, while we were witness to the rain, cleansing the earth while it filled the needs of everything, from farmers to nature.

My wife asked, “Hey, I do want to say that whatever you feel for me, I feel the same way to as we look at the rain together. So, thank you for being in my life dude,” She grinned and I laughed, knowing that she had to go through this and that in her life too, as did I.

Now that I think about it, there is a saying that, “Youngsters grow old, and oldsters die eventually.”

I think I said that aloud, because my wife nodded, “You’re right, and I know that I’ll be able to enjoy that journey that we’ve been set on, because I have the best husband, partner, and friend that anyone could ask for.”

I sighed as we looked at the rain started to slow down, seeming as if it was about to let up, “Yup. With such beautiful children too, wouldn’t you agree?” 

She nodded, and she knew that even though we couldn’t slow down time, and stop the kids from growing into brilliant adults, we could at least enjoy it as long as we have been granted the time to do so. 

“Hey look, Michael! The sun’s shining!” My wife exclaimed.

True to her word, the sun started to shine through, revealing that the rain had cleansed the earth, and it was radiating brilliance, making my eyes tear up. It seemed as if it was the story of my life, and what I was feeling…. I reached down for my wife’s lips, catching her by surprise. When I broke off after such a chaste kiss, I said a simple sentence, and she giggled, 

“Thanks so much, Sophia.” 

We watched as a rainbow started to take form over the newly cleansed earth.