Who remembers this series? I’m not sure why I stopped, the last one was back in 2017, but I was struck by a thought on my morning walk today and it felt perfect for a Blessings post.
Petrichor: a pleasant smell that frequently accompanies the first rain after a long period of warm, dry weather:
Here in the UK, we have had an exceptionally dry, and hot, late spring.
The river that runs through the country’s wettest valley has completely dried up.
The seas around the UK are exceptionally, alarmingly, warmer than they should be.
Disposable BBQs have caused devastation across several areas of natural beauty and fire crews are on high alert.
I’ve not been out of my shorts for weeks.
(I try to keep shorts for social time. Even though I work from home I try to wear trousers to work in, it feels more businesslike.)
There’s also been a dryness in my spirit. I’m not going to go into details here, it’s sufficient for me to say that Sue and I have been through, and are still going through, a time of notable change which hasn’t been easy. In times of dryness, it’s easy for our eyes to be focused inward and to miss everything that is wonderful around us. I have had a daily practice of writing down three things that I am grateful for and another three that I am excited about but even that has become stale and repetitive.
I remember starting to write this series of posts with the intention of reminding myself of all the blessings that I have in my life. Using the act of writing them down as a method of meditation. So here I am again, contemplating the blessings around me.
As I stepped out of my house this morning for my regular morning walk, I could smell the rain in the air. The petrichor was already evident to my nasal senses, the odour of ozone and geosmin being carried by the light breeze ahead of the darkening sky. There wasn’t a drop of water to be seen, but I knew that it was coming, the scent of rain was telling me it was on its way. I debated putting a coat on, but concluded that I would rather be wet from the rain than wet from my sweat.
In the last couple of days, we have experienced petrichor on a few occasions. We are a long way away from the levels of rainfall we would normally expect for this time of year, but the weather here has changed.
The change may only be temporary and may not give us everything that we hope for, but the relief is welcome all the same.
The petrichor being a promise of imminent change to come, a pledge of refreshment.
In my own life I also sense a petrichor, telling me of a change on its way.
It is worth me noting here, that some of the petrichor has been accompanied by thunderstorms and flash flooding. Much of the flash flooding is caused by everything being so dry that the water just flows off the top and doesn’t soak in. I hope that I’m not too dry to receive the rain when it comes.
I’m holding on to the promise of what I am sensing. I am counting the petrichor as a blessing.
Rain features quite a lot in the Bible, but I feel drawn to one of the parables, the stories, that Jesus told:
“Anyone who listens to my teaching and follows it is wise, like a person who builds a house on solid rock. Though the rain comes in torrents and the floodwaters rise and the winds beat against that house, it won’t collapse because it is built on bedrock. But anyone who hears my teaching and doesn’t obey it is foolish, like a person who builds a house on sand. When the rains and floods come and the winds beat against that house, it will collapse with a mighty crash.”
Matthew 7:24-27 – Building on a Solid Foundation
Header Image: Just to show that when it’s dry in the UK, it’s not really barren. This is Ullswater in the Lake District from a couple of weekends ago. You can’t tell from this picture, but this lake is a lot lower than it should be.
Graham Chastney 