Summer weather is stalling here in the Pacific Northwest. A day here or there. Maybe two. Yet we are still waiting for warmer days.
 
Weather predictions of an atmospheric river brought in rain showers last Friday. The large magnificent rhododendron blossoms we had watched open didn’t last long. Intermittent heavy rain showers changed them quickly.

Atmospheric rivers seem to carry buckets with them to gather up large amounts of tropical moisture. That moisture then creates a rain-filled storm. What started out as light rain showers and a breeze changed into heavy downpours. Our cooler days act like magnets to draw that rain
 
I sat in our family room watching the raindrops attack the rhododendron blossoms. And then I saw them hitting the leaves on a vine maple outside a window. The tree’s graceful limbs and the falling raindrops had the vine maple dancing in the rain. 
 
During a break in the rain in the late afternoon, I spied a hummingbird at the feeder outside that same window. Her wings were flapping fast as she hovered at the feeder. She was attempting to load up on the nectar. Wonder if she has a nest nearby with babies waiting?
 
We have had a mother hummingbird nest on our front porch for three consecutive summers. She stopped returning about four years ago. We miss the opportunity to watch a new family come into this world.
 
The hummingbird wasn’t intent on dancing in the rain. She was here to gather food. As I sat here the image of a ballet performance came to mind. Dancing trees waved their branches in time with rain. And a hummingbird came to feed with flapping wings keeping time.
 
Occasionally we need to take a deep breath and stop the busyness. Taking time from the ordinary tasks opens a chance to sit back and take in God’s creation, and all that we can find in it.
 

nature, rain, dancing in the rain, hummingbird

Celebrating nature,

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Featured Image Attribution: Bud Logan