it's raining

It is pouring so heavily in Atlanta right now. I remember how much I love the rain, from a distance that is. Not so much because I like to go out and experience the rain first hand but because it is a season my parents absolutely love. If I was back home right now, I would be receiving a text message on my family group by my dad asking to go have ‘chai’ in the rain followed by a LONG drive after. It Is not so instant that everyone would agree to go for a drive in the evening, but my elder sister would make sure that he isn’t being ‘left out’, forcing everyone to clear out our schedules for this ‘tea time’. Although all our drives aren’t all gleeful throughout, as you can imagine with a family of five with everyone having contradictory opinions and stubborn personalities ( except my mom and I ), we often end up fighting about the most random things especially when my dad quizzes us three siblings on maths??? Two of us are grown adults?? I  know it’s so funny but it isn’t a fair game, I shouldn’t say why. Mid game, we often stray and it turns to a serious conversation. I lose interest and start to hear the tips and taps of the drops of rain pouring against the car window. I always sit on the extreme back seat, my comfort zone. It is warningly cozy to watch the water take its way down in harmony with the scenery of the small stall selling tea and a bonfire nearby. The fire catches my gaze and I often used to get lost thinking how things would be different when I am in college. (Im v philosophical like that) The sky is gloomy and cloudy and I lean towards my mom also gazing through the window in silence. The radio has pop hindi playing, completely irrelevant to the landscape outside.

It is that moment that I remember when I once asked my mom when I was nine years old, “what calms you mom?”, It was for a school assignment where I needed to write what calmed me. She replied saying that it was watching birds and how smoothly water flows during the rain. Ever since then, even if it drizzles I watch water flowing so beautifully with so many undertones of greens and grays and blue. The only time these colors make me yellow are when its raining. My daydreaming gets cut by my younger brother saying something to annoy me but little does he know that I secretly look forward to his chirpy yapping. I return to my dad’s conversation cause I know that he can’t go on about his conversations without cracking really bad dad jokes and my mother breaking into a laugh. Our drives might not be the most cheerful and idealistic but they’re so wholesome( at least from a third perspective).

Every time it rains now, I remember those car rides and those laughs hoping time would have stopped then and hoping that I get to be home and on those drives soon.