April Showers

I have fond memories from my childhood of blustery April days. Sitting at my bedroom window, watching the rain trickle down the window pane as the wind swept fluffy grey clouds from the west. The rain would only last for a few minutes and then the sun would burst cheerfully through the clouds, sending rays of light glistening and dancing through the small, round droplets as they meandered lazily down the glass. They were magical experiences to a boy who loved to sit and wonder. At least that’s how I remember it: those halcyon days.

And now, here we are at the end of another April, thirty years later. Life’s busier and I don’t stop to ponder as much as I once did, but the month’s been just as changeable as it always was. We’ve had our mini pre-summer summer (two or three days I think) and plenty of wind and rain, but now April showers* have blown out eastwards for another year, spring is entering its dotage and a childlike summer is peaking expectantly over the next rise.

Goodbye April, you’ll always have a fond and cosy place in my heart.

Now let’s see what May has to bring...

*April showers are a real thing apparently. In the spring the jet stream starts to wander northwards dragging in wet and blustery weather from the Atlantic as it goes. The warmer sun and increased daylight also heat up the land so that it’s considerably warmer than the still cool seas, which encourages the formation of rain clouds. Mix these two factors together and you get changeable weather with frequent rain, which, at the very least, gives those beautiful spring flowers a good watering.