For many of us, dark skies are the perfect backdrop for a cozy day spent indoors reading or watching movies. Though you won’t find it in the Oxford English Dictionary yet, “pluviophile” — derived from the Latin word for rain — describes someone who loves the rain and enjoys rainy days. (If this is you, you may already be familiar with “petrichor,” which describes the pleasant and distinctive scent that accompanies the first rainfall after a dry period.)
For those of us who prefer sunshine, though, a gray, stormy day can evoke feelings of sadness or weariness. In fact, one study found that people were more likely to report symptoms of depression amid overcast weather.
Certain cities or regions, of course, are wetter than others. Seattle, Washington, for example, averages a whopping 156 rainy days each year, compared to Phoenix, Arizona, one of the sunniest cities in the U.S. with an average of just 36 rainy days a year.
But the occasional rainstorm is inevitable no matter where you live. So the next time there’s inclement weather in the forecast, let these uplifting quotes add some sunshine to your rainy day.
Rain is grace; rain is the sky condescending to the earth; without rain, there would be no life.John Updike
Let the rain kiss you. / Let the rain beat upon your head with silver liquid drops. / Let the rain sing you a lullaby.Langston Hughes
I like it when it rains hard. It sounds like white noise everywhere, which is like silence but not empty.Mark Haddon
A rainy day is the perfect time for a walk in the woods.Rachel Carson
Colors shone with exceptional clarity in the rain. The ground was a deep black, the pine branches a brilliant green, the people wrapped in yellow looking like special spirits that were allowed to wander the earth on rainy mornings only.Haruki Murakami
When the clouds roll in, I get filled with this giddy expectation … Everything is more beautiful in the rain.Penelope Douglas
The sound of the rain needs no translation.Alan Watts
Come over the hills and far with me, / And be my love in the rain.Robert Frost
Tape the sound of friends laughing together. / Save it for a rainy day.Yoko Ono
Love, like rain, can nourish from above, drenching couples with a soaking joy.Mitch Albom
For after all, the best thing one can do / When it is raining, is to let it rain.Henry Wadsworth Longfellow
When the rain falls you just let it fall and you grin like a madman and you dance with it, because if you can make yourself happy in the rain then you’re doing pretty alright in life.Rachel Cohn and David Levithan
I only want to see you laughing in the purple rain.Prince
Stew’s so comforting on a rainy day.Dodie Smith
Featured image credit: ajt/ Shutterstock
