Rain!

Oh rain, how I love thee...

I've never thought of myself as a big fan of rain. Those people live in Seattle...right?

I AM a severe weather fan though. Not because of destruction...but because of the power the severe weather represents.

Growing up in Iowa, we had four distinct seasons. Not exactly the prime location for severe weather, but I took what I got. I would watch radars for thunderstorms in the spring (and the occasional exciting tornado warning), and look for weather updates for the chance of big snowfalls.

I don't remember paying too much attention to just RAIN.

After having lived in Costa Rica for 4 years, and experiencing hours upon hours, days upon days (months upon months) of rain, I couldn't help but develop an appreciation for rain.

You would think I would have gotten sick of it. And of course, there were days when I had enough rain. I was tired of soggy shoes. Never being able to do my hair. Feeling like my rain jacket AND umbrella were permanently attached to me.

October brought two of the rainiest weeks every year. There were multiple times during the month of October where we got stuck in tropical storms, or had landslides along the road.

And yet...I miss the rain. I miss being amazed at the sound of the intense, powerful rain beating down on the roof. Having to quite literally yell at David just so he could hear me over the rain.

And now that it's October, I can't help but think of our rainy days in Costa Rica.

Somehow, rain in Oklahoma just isn't the same as the cloud forest of Costa Rica.

My excitement builds and builds as the forecasters begin predicting rain days in advance. I check regularly the upcoming daily forecast. Then the hourly forecast. And then the radar, as the rain approaches the state of Oklahoma...and then Oklahoma City...

And then, after a short time of wonderful, refreshing rain outside, it ends. Almost just as quickly as it began, the rain is gone.

And I go back to looking at next week's forecast...