First Rain of the Year

And it pours
And all of us in our thick down jackets and
Warm snow boots
Had nearly forgotten

We had been overcome
By the icicle trees
By long scarves and gloves that were
Never thick enough
By bright blue skies when it was
Too, too cold for snow
And how delighted we had been
When it warmed up to blizzard weather
And we could run outside and trip in the snow banks and
Brush fresh flakes from our eyelashes
Without fearing that our
Nose hairs
Might freeze
How delightful indeed

So we had forgotten about rain
And what devastation!
When at last we awoke
What rude reminding!
As we go out for the first time
To the unmistakeable grey
Above, below, and as far ahead as we can see

We had forgotten the rain
That seeps through the holes in our Converse
And soaks our favorite down jackets
You can hear the shock everywhere
"...feel like a walrus..."
"...home during the monsooon seasons..."
"...wait for summer and flip flops..."
"...SO COLD."
And everyone who had been thrilled by the frozen pond
And those who had begged for the snow to melt
Come together in
Sheer detestation

First rain of the year
And we sit by our windows
And drink the cocoa we had saved
For one final blizzard
"Just in case"
And watch the water flow down the
Twisting sidewalks
Melting feet of snow in hours
And see our fellow students
Shaking off their umbrellas
Adjusting their socks inside their galoshes
Jumping over wide flows of dirtied slush

Every year we forget
Look forward to springtime and sunshine
Forgetting real spring
Forgetting April showers

First rain of the year
And it's barely March