Wednesday, May 10, 2006

Why rain is overrated

Ever noticed that "rain" is mentioned in about 1 in 4 songs, poems, stories, movies, etc? Why is that? It's SOOOO cliche, and yet people still incorporate rain into their art. I have a theory as to why it's so compelling and emotionally stimulating. Even as I type this on my laptop, my entire upstairs bedroom is shaking as the thunder booms outside, and the rain competes with the piano-driven music playing through my Ipod for who can be loudest.

Here's my theory of why people love the rain:


When we're still unborn, but our minds are very developed, and we rest inside our mothers' wombs, we feel the things she feels and sense many things she senses. In our place of safety, she communicates to us what is going on in the outside world as we're not ready for it on our own yet.

When we were in the womb and our mother would take a hot shower, the sound we heard was probably very similar to the sound of the rain. And as our dark and comfortable room heated up a little, we began to associate that sound with the feeling mother experienced - a calm, relaxing feeling.

After entering the world free of total dependence on mother's body, one thing our minds never disconnected was the subconscious association of the sound of rain outside the roof and the sound of prenatal safety and relaxation.
The fallacy in my theory is that it fails to explain why some people become severely depressed when it rains for an extended amount of time.

2 Comments:

Blogger Donna S. said...

Yeah, it's true - I'm guilty of using the rain imagery in several of my songs and stabs at poetry. Rain tends to reflect two things to me and when I use it: healing or pain. Isn't that wierd? I never realized how paradoxical I am...

Wed May 10, 08:54:00 PM  
Blogger Jonathan said...

Well, then I guess you'd like the sound of the ocean? Hmmm... I can't say I've ever met someone who ONLY takes baths. I would think that was weird.

Think about it: If you take a bath, you soak in your own filth. It's like stewing in some kind of gross juice.

Thu May 11, 11:40:00 AM  

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