I want to dive into your ocean

Today's theme equals rain. Wet, pouring, windy yet oddly not-too-cold rain. I have always loved the rain. I once lived in a house that felt much like a barn and when it rained I always felt like Noah. I used to hope for it to rain for 40 days but I think the most I ever counted was up to 10.

There are songs with rain in it. That old

Here comes the rain again
Falling on my head like a memory
Falling on my head like a new emotion
I want to walk in the open wind
I want to talk like lovers do
I want to dive into your ocean
Is it raining with you?

song.

And then that other one that Missy 'Misdemeanor' Elliot sampled from Ann Peebles:

I can't stand the rain 'gainst my window
Bringing back sweet memories
I can't stand the rain 'gainst my window
'Cause he's not here with me
Hey window pain do you remember
How sweet it used to be
When we were together
Everything was so grand, yes it was
Now that we've parted
There's one sound that I just can't stand...

Rain as a metaphor for loss, for love unrequited, for feeling suddenly and starkly alone. I guess the rain makes us feel small, like looking up at the canopy of stars or looking down at all the grains of sand that fit into the palm of your hand. I guess the rain reminds us of tears. How often have you sat with the car parked and watched the rain come down, blurring your windshield and thought how much can the heart take? How much can one feel before one spills over like all the droplets splashing on the glass? Moments like those and I think, this little car, this is my ark, this might be all I have to save me.

And then there are the movies: that noir shot of the melancholic hero, a reflection of a rain-streaked window pane on his face as he suddenly realizes everything that he thought was good and true is suddenly wicked and false. Or rain-soaked lovers vulnerable and yet ready, suitcases beside them, water dripping from their shoulders as they become each other's umbrella in that final embrace as the orchestra crescendos. Or the rain pounding the pavement in some gritty city street, traffic lights and neon signs blurred, a siren wailing in the background, all clues telling us that life as we know it is about to change.

When you're a kid your parents are always telling ya to stay outta the rain. That you'll catch your death a cold. That you need to stay dry. But you know what?

It's not even true.