I've always loved crying in the rain. It made me feel like I was cared for. When everyone walked past and ignored my misery, the sky cared enough to provide me a blanket, albeit a cold one.

So when those thoughts begin to break down my composure, I rush to find refuge in the very thing people seek shelter from.

She cries with me, cries for me, I'm not sure which one. But her tears delude me into thinking that someone, somewhere still cared whether I was sad or miserable. I'm yet to find the person though... My sky.

***
I was sitting on the park bench, covered in only a flimsy sweater. The world was dreary and grey and I was cold. Very, very cold. I was confused. She had never let me down. I never felt cold in her presence.

Suddenly a very real coat was placed on my shoulders. I looked up to find a stranger with kind eyes staring at me. He buttoned his coat around me and handed me an umbrella before joining me on the bench.

We sat in silence. I never said thank you for the coat and he didn't ask. Gradually, the rain began to cease. When the sun began to peek out, he stood and faced me.

"Life often is how we perceive it. There's beauty, even in messes and the rain doesn't signify sadness the way you see it. It's hope, faith and even if you don't always see it, after every rain shower, the sun comes out."

With those words he turned and walked slowly away from me. I glanced at my hands briefly but when I looked back up, he was gone. I looked up at the sky and a double rainbow blinked back at me.

For the first time in a long time, a genuine smile blossomed on my face and as I took a deep breath, renewed hope bloomed in my chest.

I never saw him again. If I could, I had so much to say. I'd tell him that since he gave me the message, things have been so much better for me. I'd tell him that the change wasn't instantaneous but it was worth it. I'd thank him over and over for his kind and loving words that helped me rediscover my will to live, to look at the sky without expecting tears in return.

"Thank you."

"NOW THEREFORE, DO NOT BE AFRAID. I WILL PROVIDE FOR AND SUPPORT YOU AND YOUR LITTLE ONES."
- Genesis 50:21.

©TheKGrace