dew drops

It was a bitlingly crisp, grey-tinted day on the South Coast of New South Wales - a welcome reprieve from crimson skies, glowing embers and fog-like smoke swirling around our lungs.

My sister Violet and I began to notice a haze of insects swarming around our home, coming from all directions and twirling around each other like a rip curl...

Flying alongside our patio, the flying ants’ translucent wings were vibrating with energy, as, as their wisdom dawned on us (there’s a reason we call them the oracle)...

It was going to rain.

For the first time in months.

When a few days before, we had evacuated our home for the third time this summer.

Drops were set to pour as mosquitos hovered in the thickness of the humidity, fuzzy wallabies’ ears twitching with anticipation as the fluffy grey clouds began to roll over us.

It started slowly.

Soft patters could be heard on our tin roof, the sky spitting soft drops. We sat outside on the verandah waiting and hoping with all of our hearts that this would be it. That the fires would not stand a chance against Mother Nature’s cleansing drops.

A low, rich rumble stretched across the valley, as the silver clouds sucked the mist from the air.

I suddenly remembered the jar.

Running back inside before the big show began, I searched frantically for the jam jar. Although no technical system to its’ name, “The Jar” is a trusted member of our family, one that loves nothing more than to catch droplets of dew in the morning, creating an entire little world within itself.

Finding it perched on top of the cupboard, I ran back outside and firmly plonked it on the ground.

Showtime.

The rain went from measly drops to a ferocious storm, drops smacking the roof so hard we were unable to hear each other...

...if we were speaking.

As the storm grew louder and louder as we danced around the patio, a look of both complete excitement and relief in my Violet’s eyes.

The air smelled of fertile earth and herbs as we hurriedly gathered the animals and retreated inside, laughing as we dried our puppies off and got changed into the fluffiest garments we could find.

As we lit a pomegranate scented candle and stared at the masses of pure perfection pouring down around us, we felt nothing but cosy.

Billie Holiday on the vinyl player and a steaming lavender tea in hand, we religiously (and, perhaps, a bit naively) checked the RFS “Fires Near Me” app, assuming that the raging infernos would be extinguished in seconds.

Of course, things didn’t go that way. The fires are still burning, however...

Our home is filled with the scent of fresh flowers and dew. The sun is visible, the soft pastures are deep, almost forest-like green. The silvery white moon shines down upon us each night, with millions of dots staring back at us.

And still, the rain continues.

Our hearts took a load off as the stresses from this hellish summer melted away into the soil with the first rains, and, with every bit more that we get, the more excited we are to go puddle-jumping.

I took this photo after 2 hours of rain. I call it “Hygge” after the Danish word for complete cosiness, as that is what the feeling evoked.

I used my iPhone 8+ on Portrait mode with the A4 VSCO filter, lowered exposure, lowered highlights, a touch of grain and a beautiful green for the shadows.