David Hancock, Staff Writer

Dear readers,

My headphones broke, so if this post sounds a lot different than my previous ones it’s because I don’t have the soothing sound of loud rap music to help me in my writing process. And yes, I mean the Hamilton soundtrack. Haha, David listens to musicals while he writes! Laugh it up, imaginary voice. I accept me for who I am, no matter how nerdy!

So anyways, while I sit and write without headphones or speakers, I am still surrounded by music. I know it’s sounds very zen and out-of-place for a blog, but I believe that life is a song, we just have to listen for it. From my room, I can hear a whole symphony of sounds: my breath, my heartbeat, the wind blowing above the houses, the cars honking on 8 mile, the train, and – best of all – the rain.

I love rain! Rain is one of my favorite things ever! Some people get sad when it rains, I get sad when it hasn’t rained for a while. Rain is beautiful. Just looking out at the world while rain cascades down on it brings me a joy that only rain can. Listening to the patter of rain on the streets and on the roof calms my very soul. Feeling raindrops on my head and my shoulders makes me feel like I am at peace with the world, like my mind and body can stop being at war for just a few seconds to just enjoy the water from the heavens. When it’s raining is the only time I’ll stop loudly singing along to the radio in my car and just listen while nature conducts an orchestra of raindrops that command me to be silent. Rain is one of the few things on Earth that can actually get me to shut up!

I don’t get why people hate rain. Maybe it’s because they want to stay dry, but the Earth is 70% water and we shower in it every day (most of us, hopefully). Maybe it’s the cold that people don’t like about rain, but if it’s not cold then it’s hot and if it’s hot then we sweat and then we’re wet and hot, so I’ll take cold any day. Maybe people just see rain as sadness because movies stereotypically make rain a sad thing. Well, that’s just plain wrong. Just watch The Notebook, or Shawshank Redemption, or the third Matrix movie and you’ll know that the best things happen in the rain. Or Cinderella Story!!! It’s official, rain is good.

Rain is life. Without rain plants would die and animals would die and we would die. Rain is cleansing (again, watch Shawshank Redemption and you’ll know what I mean). Not many people know this, but rain clears a lot of pollution and carbon dioxide from the air, which is why sky is always clear after a big storm. And, rain is happiness. Don’t believe me? Try watching Singing in the Rain without smiling.

In movies or TV rain is usually the “what else” in “what else could go wrong?” Not for me. When I’m upset and it rains, I feel like the world is on my side, like it feels my pain, like it’s there for me. Bruno Mars makes rain sound sad in his song It Will Rain, but if he were crying on a sunny day everyone would know and stare at him weirdly so rain actually covers for him so he doesn’t look like a fool. Tears look the same as raindrops, so if you don’t like crying in public just cry in the rain and no one will know the difference.

My parents always told me that I live in a dark world. They told me that the world is full of sin and evil and corruption, and that’s it’s my duty to be a shining light in it. I think that’s why my favorite thing about the rain is the way the lights reflect across the pavement. Maybe I’ve been brainwashed by my parents (and the painting defecting exactly that that’s been hanging in my living room since I was 5), but nevertheless I love that sight. Light shines brightest in the darkness, in the evil, in the rain.

Rain reminds me that although the world may be pouring out hardships on your head, it’s really just an opportunity to shine brighter. Rain reminds me that life doesn’t always go your way, so just pack an umbrella and enjoy the unexpectedness! Rain reminds me that music is everywhere if you just listen for it. Rain reminds me that the past is gone and washed away. Plus, making out is always hotter in the rain. And if after all this you still don’t like rain, at least you get a rainbow when it’s over.

David Hancock