summer

It creeps up on me in my room, causing a soft whir in the background until I look up and see the view outside is all milky, hazy, fast falling droplets. The gutters on the road soon fill and swirl and the cars seem like they are surfing, throwing up perfect arcs of water as they race past.

The pedestrians are another thing entirely. Faces turn even more anonymous under shining black umbrellas, there are too many of them in this city. There are more people without them, not prepared for the impromptu downpour.

One woman is ill-dressed for the occasion, skimpy summer dress, long hair and flip flops. She protects her face with her hand, grimacing as her tresses now cling coldly and damp to her back. Walking slowly on tip-toes to not lose her footing she is at odds with the perky black pug attached to the leash she holds in her other hand. He trots proudly and excitedly at this fun new obstacle on his walk. He almost looks like he is smiling. I think he probably is.

A family turns the corner; the father walking slowly, deliberately with a bag of groceries and a mother following soon behind, keeping step with their small son who is desperately trying to hold his hood up over his head. It doesn’t even seem to touch the stoic father, his face bears no hint of discomfort from the deluge, his clothes are not several shades darker and jean hems are not soggy. A miracle.