One night shortly after being diagnosed with post polio syndrome, I had a dream that I came out of my leg brace and was splashing around in the rain much like Gene Kelly did in Singing in the Rain.
When I woke up, I penned this poem:
Come Out and Play
Arms flung open wide dancing in the rain
pure abiding joy to feel alive again
healing tears fall and blend in God’s puddle
no time to sit in a corner and huddle
all the old rules driven by fears
washed away now by God’s loving tears
the imprint dad left no longer remains
rain washes away all of the stains
baptized with love, Truth lights my way
the sun shines through on this rainy day
splashing and laughing my heart opens wide
embracing and flowing I’m one with the tide
God takes my hand release the old way
bathe in my glory come out and play!
Yesterday I had a lunch date with my friend. I thought she was coming to my house; she thought we were meeting downtown. No matter...we decided that I'd go in town to meet her. As we prepared to say goodbye we saw the sky get dark. I didn't even know there was a chance of showers so did not bring my umbrella which I usually carry with me especially during summertime in Boston. She asked me if I had an umbrella as the rain started to come down.
"Nope. I'm gonna go run in the rain." We hugged goodbye and off I went.
Because I contracted paralytic polio at the age of 5, I never experienced the normal childhood pleasure of splashing in puddles. Throw in an abusive and alcoholic father that I reference in my poem, and my life was constricted and restricted.
But...as the saying goes:
Within the first 5 minutes, I was soaked to the skin. There was thunder and lightning. I ran under the awning of the buildings as best as I could and made a few stops but nothing was going to cramp my style yesterday!
I stopped in one doorway and a woman said that if she didn't have to be at work, she'd be out there with me. We were laughing together at the elements and enjoying this splendid display of the Divine. There was a mailman who was concerned about me. He wanted to give me a ride to my car which was still a block or so away but I knew from my work at the VA that he could get fired for doing so. We had a wonderful conversation and he offered me an empty plastic bucket from the post office to put over my head:
He told me to make sure that I tucked my phone away someplace safe and wished me well on my journey to my car.
I splashed through the deep puddles and felt my clothes stick to my skin as thunder and lightning crashed above me. I felt totally safe and protected feeling a profound connection to God.
I laughed out loud when I got to my car and turned on the defroster because the combination of the hot car with the downpours of rain caused the windows to completely fog up. My hair was soaked as was my pocket book and the backpack I was carrying. One of my journal notebooks that I brought with me in case I had to wait for my friend got ruined. I knew it was a sign that it was time to start a new one and leave everything that I had written in that one behind!
Within minutes the skies cleared.
I could have waited for the storm to pass but life isn't about waiting for the storms to pass but about singing and dancing in the rain.
That was the first time that I'd ever done anything like that in my life...somehow I have a feeling that it won't be the last!
"Come Out and Play" is included in my latest book of inspirational poetry, "Feel the Heal: An Anthology of Poems to Heal Your Life," available along with all of my books on Amazon.
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