Rain rain come again!

Finally Chennai saw a bit of the monsoons that are suposed to have (finally) graced us with their presence,much to the relief of practcally everyone. But the scattered showers that we have had have only served to highlight the heat that returns in even greater force,as if to exact punishment for the brief leniency in weather.I can't imagine why people would complain about too much rain -I equate it with complaining about too much money and too much ice-cream.
The rains used to mean rain holidays at school,and lots of puddles to jump in and rain dances with umberellas.Now schools have cement paths and both rain holidays and great big puddles named Pacific and Atlantic Ocean are long gone(The kids of today have been deprived of the rain holidays which are their birthright!)So for that matter is school-or at least I don't go to school any more.
Rainy days now mean hours spent sitting at the bay window with a book and a cup of chai,watching and listening to the rushing of water,putting my hand through the grills of the window and letting coin sized drops gather on the sunshade and fall,splashing into my palm.
It means watching the dark green heads of coconut trees swaying against stormy grey skiea like sentinels on guard against an approaching army.
I love the low rumble of distant thunder and the sharp crack as it comes ever closer and the way lightning shapes ordinary things into illusions out of spooky stories.
I love the warm afternoon showers and the cool morning drizzles although their timing could be better.As much as I love getting wet in the rain, I wish it wouldn't happen when I have no hope of getting changed before catching the college bus.
I love the tiny almost invisible drops that signal the start of a deluge, barely touching your skin before they evaporate into thin air.
I love sitting in the car when it rains at night,when the streets lights catch the drops of water and make them glitter like gems.
And I love watching the sea in the rain,when the sky and the ocean and the sand all dissolve into one.
And finally I love the way everything looks and feels after the rain,all fresh and newly washed and the smell of the rain drenched mud,and everything seems happier and more alive.