In the Rain Again

It was a placid, dreamy day. The charming weather, the chilling atmosphere, and the lurking rain, all underlined the poetic dreaminess of that enchanting afternoon. There was a silent harmony, a colorful vibrance and a certain grandness to it. It was dark, yet somehow it was bright and prismatic. The rich and myriad hues all around further deepened the radiance of the exotic day. Under a tree sat a solitary soul, relishing the picturesque, idyllic scene; trying to summon up a few words.

Then came the long anticipated drops of rain, that further enhanced the magic of that afternoon, almost elevating it to fairy-tale like. First lightly, then heavily, the rain came down like a passionate outburst, quenching the thirst of the parched earth and a parched soul.

And, it was almost as if nature had woken up. The lush green grass was back, the trees seemed rejuvenated, there were infinite pools of water and the atmosphere all around was sparkling. The splashing of water on the ground reminded me of the chaos inside, a sort of blissful, almost welcome chaos.

I still tried to put the artistic scene and my racing thoughts into words. I could have written a thousand verses that day, and yet failed to capture the sublime and exquisite story that it told. There was a beauty, a charming touch to that rainy afternoon, that can perhaps never be expressed in words - and I have never used plain 'words' to express my innermost thoughts. One had to be there to feel it. There was a flow even in stillness, and a pause even in the flow.

The sweet lure of cold rain on an enchanting afternoon! It was an invitation I could not resist. I went and stood in the rain, barefoot, and bare soul. And, I almost thought that it completely wiped out the tears inside me. I hoped it could wash away all the ego, all the anger, all the sorrow and any traces of hatred; so that something more important and wonderful can take its place.

Then, I ran around like someone celebrating a big achievement. I was filled with a mystic, deep joy, that seemed to  quench the unquenchable. There had been many a day like that. Yet, that rainy day seemed truly spectacular, somewhat special; just because I had made it so. My heart seemed to beat faster, yet it must have skipped many a beat.

My eyes searched around for a rainbow, almost revealing the inner quest for colors and hope. I could not quite find one in the sky. But, that afternoon, amidst the rain, amidst the inner chaos, I found a rainbow, where I had almost forgotten to search. I was eternally looking for signs of hope in the external world, but that day I found hope inside me. Of course, the external world, the scintillating atmosphere around, the rain and the wind had played their part in helping me discover it.

I was touched, simply mesmerized by the sheer magic of that electric day. The cool, unrelenting gush of wind; the long endless spaces of  green, the sweet smell of rain, the steady rush of inner emotion. It was bewitching, soothing, almost unnatural, yet so natural. It touched something that had never been touched before.

I gave up thoughts of writing, and just let myself free. My eyes gazed away at the splendid scene all around, my ears listened for unheard words, my body enjoyed the biting cold, my feet, almost numb, still felt the fresh water on the ground and my soul just reverberated with an unknown joy, still punctuated by hints of woe.

And, I don't know why, I was reminded of the first drops of long ago. That moment was magnificent, glorious and almost timeless. And I felt that whatever happened in my life from then on, it did not matter, for in that one lasting moment I had lived a lifetime.

And I continued to stand there, the unending rain drenching me completely, even from the inside.

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