Colours in the rain

Whenever I am out walking in the rain a whole medley of rainy day songs tumble over each other in my head all jumbled up but a bit like a rainbow washing over me. Today is Monday so I started off with the first few lines of 

rainy days and Mondays

Always get me down,

Only they don't because I like Mondays now I don't go to school and I like rain , especially in April when I know it is a good thing for plants.

The next one to come up was

Oh listen to the rhythm

Of the pouring rain

Washing down upon my heart

The only girl I ever loved

Has gone away

And with her she took my heart.

The only girl I ever has gone away

Looking for a brand new start

She doesn't know it

But when she went that day

Along with her she took my heart

That doesn't look quite right now it's written down but it sounds really good in my head.

Next came

Like walking in the rain

And wishing on a star

Up above

And being so in love

You can really shout that , in your head.

I was walking through a market and there was a constant downpour not only from the sky but also from the awnings of the market stalls. 

Lastly, as it was raining very hard and I was getting soaked I sang

Oh no it's raining again

Too bad I'm losing a friend

And then I looked around for bright colours that stood out in the rain and the grey mist.

            

March brings breezes loud and shrill

It is really windy today. It is quite an unfamiliar sight here in Italy to see storm clouds building up and then being shooed off by the wind. Little clouds are scudding swiftly across the horizon, like schoolchildren taken on a day trip. Today though, as it's the first of March, he has made an appearance. We're not used to feeling the wind moving the air around us, our hair is blowing all over the place and getting stuck to lip gloss, leaves fluttering by as though they are looking for a place to stop or a drain to block.

My mum always brought the world around us to life. The changing seasons, the moods of the weather, all had rich personalities. Everything had its place in the universe. She made the wind seem like a fun, lively companion. She would tell us to inhale deeply and the wind would blow all the cobwebs away. She read this lovely poem by William Howitt, 1792-1879, he seems to think of the wind like she did. I'll just write the first and last part to give you the flavour, because it is quite long.


The wind in a frolic

The wind one morning sprung up from sleep,
saying, "Now for a frolic, now for a leap.!
Now for a mad-cap,, galloping chase,
I'll make a commotion in every place,!"
So it swept with a bustle right through a great town,
Creaking the signs and scattering down
Shutters, and whisking, with merciless squalls,
Old women's bonnets and gingerbread stalls,
There never was heard a much lustier shout;
As the apples and oranges trundled about.
and the urchins, that stand with their thievish eyes
For ever on watch, ran off each with a prize.

here is the last part-

But away went the wind in its holiday glee,
And now it was far on the billowy sea,
And the lordly ships felt its staggering blow,
And the little boats darted to and fro
But lo! It was night, and it sank to rest,
On the sea-bird's rock, in the gleaming west,
Laughing to think, in its fearful fun,
How little of mischief it had done.

That really makes you look at a windy day with much more affection and joy.

A friend of mine from the North of England, really misses the wind, living here in Italy. On a rare windy evening, she likes to go to bed and just lie there listening to the wind. It is such a lovely warm feeling, to be safe inside in the warm when the wind is busy howling outside.

My mum used to sing a song that started like this-

Which way does the wind blow,
Which way does it go?
It blows over meadow
And over the snow.

And lastly on this lovely windy day, Christina Rossetti

The Wind

Who has seen the wind?
neither I nor you
But when the leaves hang trembling
The wind is passing through

Who has seen the wind?
Neither you nor I
But when the trees bow down their heads
The wind is passing by.

Weather for ducks

In the mountains there is a bit too much snow, elsewhere too much rain. Photos of areas where houses are affected by flooding look miserable. It's bad enough when the washing-machine overflows.

At school, whenever it rained a lot, our teacher liked to say "nice weather for ducks". I thought of that when I saw a lake near where we live, that has burst its banks.

These swans look quite unperturbed by the fllooding.