A Rendezvous With Rain

My afternoon seista was interrupted by an abrupt load shedding as the rickety fan overhead with greasy dirt on the edge of its three blades stopped creaking and slowly ceased to rotate.

Gust of fresh wind,carrying moisture and the smell of wet earth,blew apart the curtains and shashayed inside the humid room. I could hear the howling of angry wind patrolling outside and the rumblimg and gorging of clouds and I knew it was about to rain. Anytime.

I pushed open the window and strained my neck to take in the scene.

The sky had donned a shade of dirty gray with tinges of orange rising subtly from downwards,the horizon. The clouds hung above,bellies laden with droplets ready to kiss the parched Earth.

With my head whipped back and eyes trained on the dark grey clouds,I felt an immediate irrepressible urge to raise my hand and carress the swollen bellies of the clouds with my round fingertips.

Leaves rustled with the wind; branches of trees swaying back and forth and gyrating dazedly to the beats of thunderbolts. More leaves,forcibly torn apart from their branches swam in the air,twirled with the wind,pasting themselves to windows,verandahs as the momentum of the wind lessened.

Another thunderbolt struck the ground at a distance,painting the gray sky purple with flashes of white and yellow for a fleeting moment before disappearing with an angry grumbling that resonated for a while.

Cool icy droplets fell like sharp knives from the sky, peircing open the yolk of sweltering heat and humidity. I closed my eyes,face heavenwards,to feel the cool droplets against my closed eyes.

I let the droplets rinse my face,drench my shirt and embrace me in a cool heavenly envelop,my feet unmoving as I stood still,bathing in the torrential downpour that quenched my need for mental peace.

The clouds roared and rain fell with an accelerated tenacity. The earth and red mud swallowed hungrily,the air heady with the smell of petrichor.

I thought of grappig my phone from inside to capture the moment.Post self-faked candids hashtag-ed #serene,#sublime,#enjoyingrainfall and what not.

A million captions buzzed in my mind. No need to trouble Google for throwing up some edgy captions.

Nevertheless,I thought the better of it.

Standing under the vast expanse of clouds,I felt a sudden need to drive away the false projection that most of us keep up on social media.I wanted to feel the trickling water against my skin. I wanted to watch the clouds fade and disperse. I wanted to see the rainbow through my inherent lenses,my eyes.

I wanted to have it all. Not vicariously.

And so,it rained.

It rained that hot humid afternoon. It rained with an effervescent beauty that belongs to none but nature.

It rained that afternoon and I was for once glad of having my sleep interrupted and mobile out of reach.