(c) devildoll @ deviantart.com
It’s that time of the year when my country gets the monsoon rains. Rains are not too common in Karachi, except in the monsoon season. That is why from the start of the season, I’ve been waiting for the annual quota of rains.
I have always loved rains. Living in a sunny, hot and humid city most part of the year has made me fascinated with rains. The build up to rain, with the gathering of grey clouds, is exciting. As mentioned in my earlier post, the pleasant smell of petrichor announces the start of the much-awaited rain. That is what happened last night. It was past midnight and I was preparing to watch Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (Part I) on my laptop. Suddenly, the power went out. KESC and their bad timing, I thought. After 10 minutes or so, power supply was restored. So, I went to the TV lounge to get my laptop and resume the movie. That’s when I smelled the petrichor. It’s raining, I shouted! Finally. We’ve been waiting for rains for over 2 months now. Every evening the skies get cloudy raising my hopes for rains. Last night, the wait was finally over. It didn’t rain too much though. It was drizzling, and it drizzled this morning as well. The air became light and fresh, the leaves on the trees were washed and looked vibrant, the dust and other air pollutants were gone, and the pleasant fragrance of a rainy day was all around. Oh what pleasure!
Have you noticed that on a cloudy day, time kind of stops. With no sun visible, it’s difficult to figure out what time of day it is. It’s like perpetual morning or evening. No hot and sunny afternoons.
I love this weather. It reminds me of the school days back in the 80’s. All the kids in our building would go crazy in rains, singing rain songs and dancing and playing in the rain for hours. There was construction material dumped on the roof of our building (including huge mounds of soil). We would dig tunnels from two sides until the two tunnels met and formed a bridge overhead. It was so much fun. We would also shut the gates of our building and skid and slide in the water flowing on the long path leading to the car parking. ‘Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee’ we would go as we slipped from one end to the other in the heavy rain. The usual games became much more interesting when played in rains.
I am also reminded of the day, back in 1989, when I was sitting all alone in a dingy classroom while it rained cats and dogs. Later on, a class fellow came in and we sat and enjoyed the rain, expecting not many students to show up. Such days, different from the routine class days, were always a good change. Rains also meant flooded school grounds (called ‘fields’). We had two of them in our school where the morning assemblies and physical training (PT) sessions were held. Flooded fields meant no assemblies, no post-assembly PT sessions and, most importantly, no classes since all paths to our classes passed through the fields. One or two or, at times, three days of holidays – a sure blessing or, as we call it, naimat-e-ghair mutaraqqiba for the kids!
I especially remember the day when we had to go to the shooting range for our Women Guards‘ training. It was a cloudy day and it rained when I came back home. I sat in the balcony, enjoying an omelet and paratha while watching the rain.
Omelet & Paratha - yummies!
Crazy rains during our bus trip to Skardu in 1994. Our university tour group faced a landslide and had to spend the night in the bus parked at roadside. Precious time spent with friends.
Rain in London back in 2003. There was a power breakdown (very unexpected in London), and the underground tubes were shut down. It was chaos all over and I was stranded in the streets of London – hungry, lost, and without an umbrella. To make matters worse, I did not know anything about London bus system. That’s when I met a girl who became my guardian angel. Thanks to her and her boyfriend, after a long wait at the bus stop and a bus ride through London, I made it to the Kingsbury tube station safe and sound. I don’t even know their names but they will remain in my memory forever. Thank you angels, whoever you are and wherever you are!
Rain in Washington DC, in March 2011, which ruined my sightseeing plans for the day. Cold weather and an insane day which ended well at the Union Station. A hot cup of chai (plain old brewed English tea, made in Pakistani style) and an hour of people-watching inside the Union Station, all the while listening to my favorite music. Priceless!
Rains usually mean load-shedding and no electricity. People leave from work early to rush back home. Why don’t they understand that everybody else is also doing the same thing causing really bad traffic jams? People stranded in the flooded streets, people helping each other by pushing the cars that have stopped working or by sparking the car plugs to make them work. Frustration, name-calling, honking, helping, collaborating voluntarily to clear out the traffic. For few hours the whole city is connected through the phenomenon called, and caused by, rains.
People come out in the streets and in the balconies to enjoy rains, especially when there is no electricity. The whole community becomes one, which is rare and not as evident in the daily life. We become human again. We become a group of human beings, connected by our human experiences together. Isn’t it rare and precious?
The feel of rain and the light breeze on one’s face and hands is amazing. It cleanses your body, mind and soul. It purifies you. After getting soaked in the rain comes the time to change into warm, dry clothes and enjoy a cup of hot chai with the season’s special treats – pakora, bhajiya, halwa, etc. Nothing beats that.
(c) LinAt @ deviantart.com
No wonder I find rains AWESOME!
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