After many days on the bike in Florida I thought what better way to start the Monday back in the office than to ride to work. And so I did just that – funny thing is I got about one block into the ride and it started raining. For a brief moment I considered going back to get the car and then I thought, why would I do that? And so I pressed forward, enjoying the cool rain – it was invigorating and liberating and I made it to the office with limited issue and with a big smile on my face. I call it a THPL moment. One where you defy convention and continue forward when most would retreat.
What is it about the rain that people change their behavior at even the prospect that it might rain. They cancel plans in advance, they talk about it incessantly, and they do just about everything to avoid the rain. What I find the most interesting is when plans are altered based on the possibility of rain and it does not rain and the activity still remains cancelled. Seems sort of illogical - what could happen? Your clothes might get wet? Mess up your hair? Wash off your perfume? I guess these are outcomes that could happen but I dare say they are non-issues for sure. The other interesting element is that it seems to be rather “normal” to dislike the rain – no one explicitly tells you that you should not like the rain, we just don’t. Seems to be yet another of the unexplainable part of human behavior.
And yet, there is so much to be gained when you embrace the rain –when you do not use it as a deterrent but rather as a new and vibrant way to experience life. THPL needs newness, diversity, different, unpredictable to get to the next level. And it seems to me that all of these come along when you embrace the rain – run in it, walk in it, ride in it. Some of the best memories I have are of outdoor activities in the rain. I can remember being 14 years old in a torrential downpour using a grass field as my own slip and slide. Or running in a warm summer rain, feeling the rain drops dance on my skin, a veritable orchestra of feeling – bringing a level of alive that seems hard to find. Of course there is that rain storm that wrinkles all of your nicely pressed clothing but why not celebrate that as well. Why not think about how in fact there are very few other ways to “touch” nature so vividly. And when you do THPL comes to life and you feel better for it.
Loving life and looking forward to the next rain storm
Ciao
Joe