Listening to the Rain

Trey Smith

It rains a lot where I live. It blows a lot too. Often, the rain and the wind arrive together. While most of our storms come from late Fall - Winter, we entertain them as well in Spring - mid-Summer.

I don't know if there is a scientific basis for what I'm about to share -- maybe it's just the way I perceive it -- but the rain of winter sounds different than the rain of spring and summer. The former is loud and harsh; the latter is quieter and soft.

It doesn't seem to matter how much rain we receive at any given time, downpours in the spring and summer simply seem more serene than their counterparts in winter. I don't know what scientifically would account for this difference.

The wind is different too, but I can discern a scientific basis for it. In winter, deciduous trees lose their leaves and so the wind whips more easily through the forest behind our house. As spring opens up, the deciduous trees begin to form leaves. As the wind gusts up the river valley to the first hill in town -- the hill I live on -- the deciduous trees, in conjunction with our many evergreens, act as a buffer to the fierce wind so that it doesn't impact our yard and house as severely.

However, regardless of whether or not the differences in rain and wind are based in science or my own particular perceptions, I love laying awake at night listening to spring rains.

I get a lot of practice!