By Ann Wang
Rain. For many, it’s just a damp, gloomy, unwanted interruption to the day. It’s that persistent drizzle that makes you want to stay in bed, the downpour that ruins your perfectly planned lunch break, and the grey sky that somehow mirrors the feeling of a test you didn’t study for. I get it: rain doesn’t exactly scream “good vibes,” especially when school is already keeping you knee-deep in assignments, projects, and deadlines. But as we approach the midpoint of November in “Raincover”, a temperate rainforest averaging around 1000 mm of rainfall every year, it seems like the constant pitter-patter on our windows won’t be leaving anytime soon.
Sometimes, I wish Summer lasted all year round. It’s not so difficult to leap out of your bed when the daylight beaming through the windows welcomes you into the day with a warm embrace. There’s a sort of magic that comes with the golden glow of summer—the easy mornings, the promise of freedom, and the sense that everything is just… right. But as much as I love those sun-filled days, I’ve come to realise that it’s the rain that keeps us grounded. Rain builds character. It teaches us patience as we wait for the storm to pass, resilience as we navigate the puddles, and gratitude when the clouds finally break.
In the same way, school throws us its own kind of rain—YML tests (and the 50 pages of homework and 23.5 hours of AP classroom to prepare for them), the overwhelming number of red error lines in the computer science assignment, or that essay that did not “click” the way you wanted it to. But it’s through those moments of challenge, when the storm feels like it will never end, that we learn how to weather the downpours of life. The rain may feel inconvenient at the moment, but it brings growth. It nurtures, refreshes, and makes the world around us a little more vibrant.
And just like how Mr. Lu says “Better luck next time!”, the rain has a way of keeping us humble. It helps us find companionship, making us all walk in the same soggy shoes and share the same frustrations of battling the umbrella that always flips inside-out. It’s like everyone finally understands the same joke. “It’s just one of those days,” we say, and suddenly, it doesn’t feel quite as bad.
So, the next time you hear the rain knocking at your window, instead of wishing it away, maybe take a deep breath and listen. Just listen. Let the steady rhythm of the rain remind you that even in the midst of life’s storms, there is still peace, renewal, and the quiet promise that brighter days are ahead.