Rainy Exile

The rain poured from sky in volumes that reminded the children of the great flood in the Bible. It struck the aluminum porch roof with considerable force creating a sound that was both symphonic and cacophonous at the same time. Scott, Kelsey, Luke, and Kerry stood on the from porch watching in awe as the torrential downpour created small streams and rivers in the front yard. The water collected in the divots of the yard creating puddles that danced and splashed in response to the rain like a scale model of the surface of a stormy sea. The barn hill was awash in muddy dirty water that pushed the gravel to the side and carried it to the bottom of the hill where it collected in irregular windrows.

The children looked at each other, each knowing what the others were thinking. They knew that they shouldn't but they really really wanted to. The wind blew the rain towards them and covered their faces in a fine cold mist. Before the storm had blown in, it was eighty-six degrees outside. The coolness of the summer rain refreshed the children and beckoned them to leave the shelter of the wrap-around porch. 

“Do you think we'll get in trouble?” Kelsey inquired of her older brother.

“Probably,” Scott replied. “Dad's gone though, so we probably won't be in that much trouble.”

The younger three nodded thoughtfully as Scott peered through the window at his mother who was vacuuming the carpet in the living room. It was Saturday. That meant that Christa had been cleaning all day. The Children had completed their hundred pickup and had fled the scent of pine-sol and bleach for the freshness of the outside air. They were just discussing the entertainment options for the day when the storm rolled across the hills and began it's torrential invasion.

Scott looked around and slipped out of his rubber barn boots and pulled his white crew socks from his feet. He rolled up his pant legs and stepped onto the sandstone block that served as a step. The step was still mostly sheltered by the porch roof overhang but Scott smiled broadly as the splashing raindrops coated his feet and shins with water. He reached out and allowed the water from the roof to pummel his forearm and open palm. The cold rain sent goosebumps up his arm and a chill down his spine.(The roof on the porch was just a temporary roof that had been laid over the new framing until the whole house was ready to be roofed. The aluminum sheeting had been salvaged from another building and the porch had no gutters at the time.) 

“It's cold!” he giggled as he tentatively stuck his head into the falling water.

That was last straw. He had pushed the boundaries far enough. With a joyous laugh, he leaped from the sandstone step into the torrential downpour of the summer storm. He ran through the yard and jumped into a slide across wet grass. It took his younger siblings less than thirty seconds to follow his example and join him in the rain. All four siblings ran through the summer downpour, fully enjoying themselves despite the eventual consequences for their actions. 

They engaged in a quick game of tag which was an endeavor that was more challenging than usual given the soggy and slick conditions of the yard. They walked gingerly onto the gravel driveway so that they could put rocks and other obstructions in the paths of the streams that ran down the hill. The water was immediately redirected around their obstructions almost as if the streams were living beings. They dropped chunks of dirt and grass into the water and watched it dissolve as the water eroded the obstacle and carried the particles down the hill to be deposited with the other minuscule obstructions. The power of the water seemed so disproportionate to the size and mass of the stream. The children searched for twigs to drop into the water so that they could follow them down the hill until the small improvised water crafts were run aground on the gravel bars at the bottom of the hill.

Water is so magical when viewed through the eyes of a child. There is an inexplicable power in it's ability to change the environment around it. One drop of water is so insignificant, but when it was added to a bunch of other drops of water, it became something significant. If that collection of water droplets was given momentum- that was a force to be reckoned with. That was the force that flooded the earth as Noah and his family became the first sailors in history. That was the force that cut the Grand Canyon from the rock of Arizona. 

Almost as suddenly as it had begun, the rain stopped. The sun came out and a rainbow stretched across the sky. The children stood there entranced by yet another magical talent associated with water. The colors spread across the sky in a banner of beauty. 

“Wow,” Kelsey exclaimed in aw. “It's so pretty.”

Nobody argued with her. They all just stood there and watched. Eventually, the rainbow faded from the sky and the children turned back towards the house. The sun returned in full force and, in combination with the residual humidity from the rain, created a rather uncomfortable atmosphere for the children to play in. The children climbed up onto the porch and approached the door that led into the living room. They were surprised to find that it was locked. 

They looked at each other in confusion as everyone shook their heads in answer to the question that hadn't been asked yet. No, none of them had locked the door. They walked to the front of the house and tried the door to the parlor. It was also locked. They tried the door into the laundry room and the back porch door as well with similar results. The children stood on the back porch and knock on the pine door that separated them from the kitchen.

“Mom!” Scott called on behalf of his siblings. “We're locked out! Let us in!”

“I don't think so!” Christa responded from the other side of the door. “I have been cleaning this house all day. You were the ones who decided to play in the rain and the mud. You can stay outside until I'm ready to deal with you. I am not letting you mess up all my hard work before the end of the weekend.”

The children just stood there completely flabbergasted. At the outset of their transgressive episode, they had accepted the possibility of punishment as the probable outcome. However, it had never occurred to them that banishment from the family abode was a possibility. Of all the punishments they had experienced in the past, exile was not one of them. 

“We're locked out of the house?” Kelsey questioned tentatively.

“Yes,” her mother responded with resolution.

“If we're locked out because we're dirty,” Scott began. “And the shower is in the house, how are we supposed to get clean enough to come in the house again?”

“When you are all ready to come inside and stay inside, I will give you a bottle of shampoo and you can wash up in the milk house,” Christa responded. “For now, you are out of luck. And don't even think about coming in through the basement.”

The children turned around and reluctantly walked back outside. They wandered over to the swing set and settled into their perspective swings.

“Well,” Scott declared. “I guess the answer to our question is Yes. We will get in trouble of we play in the rain.”