The Weather

It's been terribly, unseasonably hot in Utah this week. That's gotten me thinking about the weather.

In the early 1990s, my husband and I lived in a village in Suffolk, England called Leiston. Not too far southeast from Leiston, is a little village called Thorpeness. On the edge of Thorpeness, is a popular man-made lake where people can rent rowboats. We liked to go there to feed the geese, admire the swans, row on the lake, and relax. Unfortunately, it was sometimes more crowded than we preferred.

We hadn’t been in England long, when one rainy day we thought it was the perfect time to go to Thorpeness. Since we were from the dry state of Utah, where activities are sometimes cancelled because of rain, we figured there would be fewer people there. We’d quickly and easily obtain a boat to rent. We were pretty sure we'd have the whole lake to ourselves.

When we arrived, the parking lot was full. 

 

We looked at each other and laughed. The lakeside was more crowded than ever with people dressed in raincoats, wearing their wellies, and carrying colorful umbrellas. We had to stand in a longer-than-usual line to rent our boat.

That’s when we learned that the weather did not stop the English. Even with the crowd and the rain, we had a great time at the lake.

The British writer Alfred Wainwright said, “There’s no such thing as bad weather, only unsuitable clothing.” I agree. Ever since that day in England, we have tried to not let weather determine what we do outside.

 

But I have to say this current heat wave is something else. I'm not sure I could sufficiently undress to be willing to subject myself to much time outside. Today, I'm grateful for an air-conditioned home. I'm happy to think back on those young, rainy days in England.

Here's a public domain image of part of Thorpeness Meare that I found when Googling:

by Geoff Doggett