Sun Showers

 

One of the most intriguing natural phenomena to me is sun showers. As I was walking across campus in the rain today for one moment the sun began to shine. Usually I’m not a fan of the rain. While I’m thankful for the rain because it refreshes the flora of the earth and cools things down, I find rain depressing because it keeps the sun from shining. But something about sun showers gives me joy. I think it’s because it combines the energy of the sun with the rejuvenation of the rain falling. I took these two pictures standing in the same spot with the only change being a 180° turn of my body. I like the contrast of the sky between the dark clouds in the first picture and the blue sky in the second.

 

Another thing I find interesting about sun showers is the expression I always used to refer to them growing up. Every time there was a sun shower my dad said “The devil is beating his wife.” It was an expression I used often to refer to sun showers until I came to college, when I found out that hardly anyone outside of the Southeastern United States uses the term (I’m from Macon, Georgia). I was reminded of the expression during this most recent sun shower and decided to look into the history behind it. Apparently, the expression comes from different folklore stories featuring animals or tricksters getting married to the devil. The phrase is explained as the devil spitting the fire of hell (the sun rays), mixing with the tears of his wife (the rain). I can’t wait to explain to people where this idiom comes from the next time a sun shower comes along!

 

*credit to theidioms.com for background on “The devil is beating his wife” expression.