Sunday 19 January 2020

Rejoicing in the Rain

It's been pattering on our roof, trickling into our tanks and soaking into our soil. Oh, how happy I am for wonderful wet days after so many dry days. I suspect there are others rejoicing too in this much-longed-for RAIN!

A jewel-like raindrop on the tip of a leaf.

Our new rain gauge (a rather hopeful Xmas gift from my son to his Dad) finally has some water in it. Some drought-affected areas had precious rain fall too. It was just wonderful to see footage of rural folk and farmers celebrating in the downpours of rain in their towns and on their parched paddocks. Like these happy station workers in this video, I'd be jumping for joy and splashing in muddy puddles too if I hadn't seen rain for as long as they haven't. (I fully intend to jump in a puddle or two when I take Sir Steve dog for his morning stroll a little later on. I expect he'll find a puddle to loll about in too!)


Precious water in our rain gauge.

This beautiful rain will bring relief too for our native wildlife who are impacted by lack of water in the landscapes they call home. They've been thirsty too! At our place, these two rather wet Pied Butcher Birds perched up on the railing of our back verandah yesterday to fluff up their feathers and sing. They broke out in bursts of rather enthusiastic trills and whistles which I imagined was in celebration of the "wet stuff" falling from the sky. 


Happy and wet Butcher Birds on our back railing.

More rain is forecast for today. I hope the mist of this morning, which shrouded the view from my back deck in a cloak of grey, doesn't clear to a blue-sky day but to a cloudy, rainy one instead. Follow-up rain would be wonderful! 

 Misty view from my back deck this morning.

For many people in drought-impacted areas, this rain brings with it, more than anything else, hope. Hope that more will fall to revive their landscapes, properties and farms, to replenish creeks and rivers and dams and to boost their spirits. That's certainly what I'm wishing for too. Xx

Prayer flags along my wet front verandah.

Have you had rain at your place? 

Meg






33 comments:

  1. Yes isn't the rain wonderful....I only hope it doesn't all come in January and then we will get a flood. My backyard filled up half with water as it came down pretty heavy and I got soaking wet even under my umbrella when putting the chickens away. Have a great week. Kathy

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    1. Absolutely wonderful, Kathy! We can see black clouds over the ridge and are watching the radar. Fingers crossed for some more rain today. Meg:)

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  2. Meg I haven't checked the rain gauge this morning but we had had 50mm over the past few days when I checked it yesterday and we also had drizzle overnight. I think the coast got a lot more than inland as is the norm but thankfully some of our farmers out west got some rain. It was rather patchy apparently. The garden and the wildlife were very appreciative too.

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    1. 50mm out your way is wonderful, Chel. Hooray for rain! Meg:)

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  3. Hi Meg, That's fantastic news. I am so happy for you. What gorgeous birds. Yes, we had snow up in the California mountains a couple of nights ago. I'm sure there was rain in Los Angeles. I hope it continues for you.

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    1. Thanks, Stephanie! I'm just back from a walk with Sir Steve dog who happily plonked himself in the now-flowing creek for a drink and a paddle. We're all happy to see rain here. Meg:)

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  4. So glad you finally got some rain Meg. There is rain forecast for my area today, not much a maximum of 5mm, but after being so dry for so long it will be very welcome.

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    1. I hope you do get some rain today, Jan. It's hard when it's dry over an extended period and like Christmas when it finally falls. MegXx

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  5. We saw you had rain on our BBC news, and was pleased, we understand not everywhere and not enough, but as you say, it gives you hope.

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    1. Thanks, Marlene. In some places, where it's not rained for years and where towns are carting in water because their dams are dry, it's follow-up rain they really need but this is a beginning. Fingers crossed now for more falls over coming weeks and months. MegXx

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  6. That is great! The gauge water looks so fresh! Everyone is rejoicing...people and animals /birds alike! Andrea

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    1. Those two birds were really happy, Andrea. They were singing up a storm!
      Meg:)

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  7. We’ve had torrential rain in the Northern Rivers, at last 🙏

    The rain has lifted everyone’s spirits for sure. There is a palpable energy of joy and thanks in the atmosphere, and as I’m typing this I hear thunder rumbling in the background 😁

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    1. Hooray! Wonderful that you've had soaking rain down your way, Cheryl, after it's been so very dry. We had a storm roll through around lunchtime today Hope that thunder brings more rain for you and the Northern Rivers too. MegXx

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  8. I'm so relieved you've finally received some rain. Where I live it rains a lot and remind myself of your situation whenever I find myself complaining about it. I hope you get more. X

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    1. How lucky to live in a place that gets lots of rain, Jules. I think I'd like to live there ... especially when the Summers seem to be getting hotter and drier here. Meg:)

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  9. I am rejoicing with you Meg,. It must be a wonderful sight to see that precious stuff falling from the sky. Hopefully all the fire tortured regions will get some too. My heart aches for all that Australia has lost due to the fire.

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    1. Rain has brought relief to some areas impacted by the bushfires, Cherie. I don't think it's been enough to put some of the fires out but it is a start. MegXx

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  10. That's good news Meg. Here in the West of Scotland, we are experiencing a particularly wet and windy January. If only I could send some of our rain your way!

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    1. There's thunder rumbling in the distance as I'm typing this, Christina. More rain to come this afternoon. I hope you are staying dry up there in Scotland! Meg:)

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  11. That is fantastic news Meg, so glad to hear that you have finally had some rain. I love your verandah with the prayer flags. I would love it to be warm enough in the evenings to have one of those, but sadly even in the height of summer it is too cold!

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    1. I can't imagine a cold Summer! There are heatwave conditions forecast here for this coming week, it's set to reach 35C tomorrow. I love my prayer flags too. I like to sit out on the front verandah in the mornings and watch them fluttering in the breeze. MegXx

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  12. Blessed rain! Around 130 mls here. The river is up though, so my flood alert sensors are going off madly! Some areas that were on fire not so long ago have had good steady rain too, which is a wonderful relief. Love your big long verandah Meg.....mine's soggy wet too, with the rain coming unusually from the north.....not complaining though 😊

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    1. Oh, I hope it doesn't flood down your way, Nanette! We had a storm through yesterday that came in from the North too and that's unusual here too. Usually they roll in from the west. Meg:)

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  13. That’s wonderful news! I hope every area where rain is needed got enough rain.

    I too love your verandah.

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    1. Many areas did receive rain, Nil, but some missed out or had lighter falls so more rain is needed. I love my verandah too! It wraps almost all the way around our house and shaded the house. It's a nice place to sit and watch the world go by. Meg:)

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  14. Glad for your rain. We got some this week too.

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    1. I have been so glad too, Kath, to have had quite good rain over the past week. Have you had more rain too? Meg:)

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  15. Hasn't the rain been wonderful! We're all loving it here, especially the afternoon storms and Patch has been finding plenty of muddy puddles to drink and roll about it. It's fun to watch him so happy doing it but then he realises he needs to be hosed off before he can come inside..... instant torture! :) xx Susan

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    1. Reading about Patch enjoying muddy puddles made me smile, Susan. Our Steve dog has been "detouring" into the creek every time we go for a walk and finishes off each swim with a tag-wagging happy shake! Meg:)

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  16. Hi Meg,
    Wasn't the rsin beautiful.
    We had 25 glorious mm last week and another 6.5 mm last night.
    So wonderful to see all the reports of rain around, hopefully this is just the start of more to come.
    Take care
    Cheers
    Jane.

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    1. So glad to read you've had rain, Jane. It makes all the difference! We've had very humid weather this past week and some good follow-up rain so things are rather soggy here at the moment. I hope you've also had some more rain too. MegXx

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  17. Yes, the rain first arrived on Christmas Eve. Then we had another stretch of rain, about 2 weeks after. As I'm typing this, I can hear the rain starting to hit our tin covered verandah, again. We're due for a good week of rain (they predict). So feeling really chuffed!

    I love your two butcher birds. A juvenile and most likely a parent. We get them here too. So personable. They love it when we dig in the garden. Shadowing us very closely, waiting to grab a grubby morsel, we might unearth. They literally don't care how close we are. In they swoop, grab the goodies, then give us a cocky grin. They may not even fly off straight away. When I saw them, I immediately thought how lucky you are to have them too!

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