Kiss the Rain

By rain-lover and child of the '90s, our very own Lizi Perry.

I love it when it rains. Recently we’ve had a few rainstorms here in Hull. I’m grateful for the break from the “nice” weather, if I’m being honest. I don’t have the complexion to cope with the summer sun at the best of times, and while I am enjoying the views from my window of glorious sunshine (and spotting dogs frolicking on their way to and from the park), I am still very much feeling like an indoor cat – and have on occasion been found similarly napping in a sunbeam.

Those of you who watched The Roaring Girls’ “whodunnits” on Facebook, might have seen the moment a crack of thunder took us by surprise – and seen Sarah’s face of pure terror. She is a woman who does not enjoy thunder, to put it mildly. I love thunder. I love the distant rumbling, the crack that takes you by surprise. I know I’m not alone in finding the sound of a storm, especially when you are safe and dry, to be a comforting, relaxing sound. Though to be honest, our recent storms have been a little less “ambient rain sounds” and a little more “is someone throwing rocks at my window? Oh no, it’s just an absolute monsoon.”

When in rained earlier this week, I lay on my bed and closed my eyes. I could almost smell that lovely “it’s just rained” smell from the sound of it. The sound of rain makes me think of summer holidays. I’m not sure if it’s a product of where we went on childhood holidays, or whether those were the memorable parts of them, but in my memory at least, our holidays were always wet…! The sound of rain on tent canvas is one of those nostalgic, memory inducing ones. It’s the sound I think of whenever I wake up and hear the sound of rain on my window – for a moment I imagine I’m going to open my eyes and find myself laid next to my sister, about to discover we’ve pressed something against the tent wall made the inside of the tent wet, or perhaps in the old, orange, two-man tent that Dad took us camping in when we were very young – a trip I’m sure was planned to give Mum a break from us, but felt very much like an adventure at the time.

Rain also makes me think of that 1997 classic Kiss The Rain as sung by Billy Myers (thanks Google – while I remember all of the lyrics I had no idea who it was by, but it was definitely on a cassette tape compilation album of some sort that we owned alongside some All Saints or Boyzone or something of a similar vintage). What can I say, I’m a product of my childhood. I’m sure there are many much better songs about rain, but this is the one that my brain pulls forward.

So if like me you are still living an indoor life – working from home, self-isolating or shielding, or just missing the friends and family you haven’t been able to see since before March, I suggest you take Billy’s advice and “keep in mind we’re under the same sky”. Am I looking to a mostly forgotten 90s pop tune for philosophical advice? Yes. Would Spice Up Your Life or Waterfalls be a better place to find this? Yes*. Will this stop me watching the rain from my window, singing Kiss The Rain to myself and enjoying the storm? No, no it won’t.

*The Roaring Girls are not responsible for any mistakes you make when following advice from 90s music.