SOLSC: Day 15 (a day late!)

I love the tv show "Glee," and I've written about it on more than one occasion. Here's one of my all-time favorites, a mash-up of "Singing in the Rain" and "Umbrella"

Listen, you'll like it.

Anyway, I've been thinking about the concept of rain and how our lives have their own rain storms or showers or mists as we carry on about our days. So many times I've found myself worrying about the rain instead of singing in it. So I give you a list of reasons I will sing in the rain:

1. Because the rain will pass: Nothing in this world will last forever when it comes to our troubles. We eventually move on and the trouble does, too. So the rain moves on to shower someone else and we live to enjoy another day.

2. Because someone may loan you an umbrella: the people around us can offer comfort, solace, a sense of security and sometimes even the icky L-word ;) Without these umbrellas we could sit and be drenched for far too long. I am grateful for the people in my life who would willingly endure life's storms alongside me, or even on my behalf.

3. Because rain can be life-giving: My best friend has a terrible habit of leaving his plants unattended for days at a time, and every now and then I notice how sad and dead-looking they are. But just add water, and like magic they perk up and their color returns. Sometimes a life storm can give us a renewed sense of being instead of leaving us exhausted and needing to rebuild.

4. Because rain is inevitable: Just as we know that the rain will eventually pass, there's no sense in living life as if there will never be any rain. I'm not saying to live dreading a struggle that may be on the horizon, but to understand when the clouds roll in that this is part of living, part of feeling, part of being.

5. Because the rain music is amazing: so much of my rainy days (both figuratively and literally) are soothed by the right kind of music. My favorites: John Mayer, Coldplay, and Adele to name a few. I use the rain as an opportunity to feel the music.

6. Because the rain is cleansing: you know how great a hot shower feels when the stress of the day can just melt off of you? It's the same with life's rain. Sometimes, we just need to be rocked back into perspective by a life storm; it helps cleanse the buildup of ordinary life and give back the vision we so desperately need.

7. And really, what's better than a rainy day and a book?! I can't think of anything better to do when life sends trouble pouring my way than to escape into a world that isn't my own. I love getting lost in the story; I love the sound of pages turning when I read and when my students read. Books allow you to pull into yourself, or leave yourself behind for a while.

Life is not about waiting for the storm to pass, but learning to dance in the rain...