An Ode to Raindrops
Monday, August 22, 2011 at 5:00AM There is ancient history in a raindrop, if we could read it.
Where has the raindrop been? Was it ever part of a powerful storm that altered the land and destroyed the lives of men? Perhaps it once bounced along in a woodland stream where primitive people bathed their babies, washed their garments, and fished for their suppers. An important king may have quenched his thirst with the drop, or maybe it fell from a farmer's brow as he plowed the field. How many plants have reached their roots into the soil to seek out its life giving moisture? Does the drop still remember the pounding rhythms of the ocean? How long did it float in a cloud before returning to earth in my front yard?
August has been much drier than July, and I was happy this weekend when we had a real gullywasher, as local folks would say. Great torrents of water overwhelmed the gutters and came pouring off the eves of the house. We sang for joy. This means we don't have to pull heavy hoses over the yard for a few days, depending on the temperatures. It is still steamy in the Deep South, but September's relief is just around the corner. I went outside after the storm and waxed euphoric over the raindrops still clinging to the foliage:
Deborah
raindrops, summer garden, wet foliage in summer, weather
Reader Comments (21)
This was a wonderful observation of where rain has been. And it is remarkable to think how it gets to your garden, And this year, lucky and grateful that they are finally coming. I can not remember a year here where I first I wished it would stop raining, then a month later, desperately wishing it back.
Nice reflection on those precious raindrops. They are in drought here in North Carolina but last night was a nice downpour for us, with hurricane Irene coming around the bend this week, hoping for rain and no wind :)
Hi Deb,
I'm glad to hear you've had a nice deluge of rain; please send some here. I'd really love a storm right now. I'm just grateful we don't have the high temperatures that you've no doubt had.The grass in my lawn is clinging on by its teeth... My neighbour's is dead, mine lives only because I water is occasionally - I'm not one for nannying plants, but would rather not have dead grass.
I made an attempt to get some planting done yesterday as we'd had some rain but I was struggling to dig just a few inches down, clearly any rain we are getting is quickly being used by hungry plants.
What a fresh and cool post! Deb, do you know the name of your heuchera with almost white leaves? People ask me (I posted its picture some time ago), but I don't have its label. Thanks!
We got three inches of rain in PA yesterday in a long line of similar storms. My husband says he is building an ark. I wish I could redistribute the water to other parts of the country that need it.
Hallelujah for the rain!!!!!!!! Woohoo!!!! I hope, I pray we'll be saying the same here...someday :-)
An exceedingly dry summer here in the UK, but not much sunshine. We need soft, drizzly, wetting rain as the ground is so parched that heavy rain will just wash off.
Your photos are delectible and very evokative!
Just as with snow, raindrops add such a magical quality to all the plants with their touch. They glisten, shine, and beam ...beautiful shots!
Ah, what beautiful misty, drippy pictures. They make me long for the feel of rain, not only for my garden, but for my soul. Can you tell it's been a long time since I've seen a raindrop?
I think we are all beginning to realise just how essential rain drops are, where would we be without rain. Your garden looks so very fresh, the rain must have been very welcome after all the heat you must have been having.
Thank you all for your comments! Your support means a lot to me. I do wish I could send some raindrops to Texas and other parts of the world that desperately need them! Tatyana, the name of the heuchera is 'Snow Angel', an apt name for a plant that looks so cool and refreshing despite the summer heat.
Lovely, how nice to imagine where the raindrop has been through time and space, but please send some raindrops here; it has been so dry and hot this week I even need to water my fig tree! Christina
I love your opening paragraph, wonderfully written. I remember learning about the water cycle in school years ago, and having a similar chain of thoughts wander through my mind.
I'm glad you've had some much-needed rain. Our summer months here are usually bone-dry, necessitating the dragging of hoses more times than I care to recall. Even here though, we had some measurable precipitation this past weekend. Not a gully-washer, but enough for the weather station to record it, which is unheard of for August for us. Alas though, not enough to put the hoses away...yet.
What's always fascinated me is the fact that each drop of water might also at some point have been part of a living body; it might have temporarily been part of a dinosaur or Napoleon or anything in-between and beyond.
Debs, I just love the photos. They look so fresh and cool. I especially love the puddle in the hosta leaf. Rain is a wonderful thing.
Your raindrops look so lovely and thirst-quenching that I had to pour myself a glass of water. What a joyful ode, Deb!
I love your musings about where a rain drop has been...a wonderful moment of contemplation...and as Susan said, your photos are so evocative...beautiful!
O, what a gorgeous blog to discover...I liked 'did the raindrops remember the pounding rhythms of the ocean'. Lovely to think upon. I shall add this into my 'things to contemplate in the garden''
A wonderful take on a raindrop and can almost hear you singing in the rain. I love the smell of steamy heat after the showers or even gullywashers. Here our cool summer has been too damp and overcast to appreciate the life giving drops.
p.s. Now it looks like the East Coast is about to receive more rain than they would ever want - praying Irene downgrades her winds
When I lived in Colorado I missed the rain, the fog, the mist, the dew. There is something so spiritual in listening to the dripping woods.
Our summers are usually so dry, and we beg for rain on our garden. But this year we have had plenty, and it has been such a blessing!