monsoon christmas

i went to sleep last night to the pleasant sound of steady rain outside my hotel room. i woke to the same, the melody of the drops hitting the tile floor are soft and soothing. it is the kind of sound you can lay and enjoy for hours, both for the pure comfort of the sound and because you know leaving the your darkened room will involve braving the storm.

today is christmas day. calls have been made to say merry christmas to friends and family. my hand phone has been beeping with sms all day as other friends close the gaps of space with short messages of noel. a few of these holiday wishes have come from people i thought had forgotten me entirely, those messages were mostly broadcast types, so maybe they have. others were personalized and personal. a chance for a friend to connect and wish another friend good wishes on a special day.

it has been raining in bali for most of the time i have been here. the past few days have been a complete wash out, heavy rains that have flooded the streets and kept most people hidden under atap. the sky will lighten and darken as the day goes on, but the steady rain never seems to end. the sounds of running or falling water is ever present. even inside with music or television on, the sound is there to remind you that the storm continues.

i went out last night for a traditional christmas eve dinner of fajitas and watered down slushy margaritas. this was in a club that overlooks the monument built at the sight of the christmas bombings a few years ago. as i ate i could see the list of names of the fallen. although the pseudo-mexican (hey it’s better than i can find in kl so i am not complaining) was just okay, the crepe at the end was very good and the coffee was a nice plus. as i asked for the bill, i noticed a few drops of rain on the street. after i had paid the bill i looked up with trepidation, those drops had turned into a sheet of falling rain with strong wind driving it into the glass wall to the outside.

the patrons on the balcony were brought inside and the sliding doors were closed. as i sat, my change in front of me, i tried to decide if this was a squall which would pass or a storm which would last too long for me to sit it out among the crowd. after a few minutes i decided to brave the storm without a rain coat, thoughts of bumping along on my moto dodging hidden holes in the indonesian roads. the real issue was that the rain was so heavy; i knew i would need to ride without my glasses, meaning dark, wet, flooded streets with less than perfect vision. what could go wrong?

as i drove past the wind swept beach, squinting my eyes against the heavy drops being blasted into my face, i remembered riding my bike home on a christmas night when i was a teen. i had been out with my friends and had… well lets say we had enjoyed the christmas cheer and were very relaxed by the end of the night. i was riding home, feeling snow on my face, slightly stinging as the cold touched my warm cheeks. as i glided into a corner, there was a car making a turn and i was going too fast, i hit the breaks hard and went into a slide which sent me quickly to the ground. on that dark and cold night i slid through the icy intersection tumbling between two moving cars. i could easily have ended up under the wheels of one of these cars, but was somehow protected from real harm and walked away with bumps and an understanding that i was just given a new chance.

this night years ago was with me as i drove in this new storm, half a world away from my former home, during a monsoon and with vision blurred by rain and lack of corrective lenses. the blurriness brought back the thought of this prior stupid event. here i was years later, older, smarter and still willing to believe that if i went out into the storm i could find my way with at worst a few bumps and bruises. this time i made it with no crash. i went to bed after a warming shower, snuggled in and slept to the sound of the drops outside my door. reminding me that the storm was going to last longer than the drive, and that i was right to not try to avoid going out in the rain. even if it was scary at points, it was worth it to be able to sleep safely in a warm bed.

this morning, christmas morning, came with rain still falling. it’s now christmas night, the storm has only gotten worse. i am again snuggled in, and listening to the drops. other than sms and calls to loved ones i have avoided the holiday completely. i have come to an island paradise and ridden out the storm. i have braved the rain, and realized that later the sun will come out. i am hoping the next time in paradise is warm and sunny, but i can accept that this time it ended in days of rain.

i have enjoyed my monsoon christmas, i will never forget the sound of the rain.