a spot of rain

Sudden rainstorms are the basis for many important plot twists in 19th Century English Novels. Those I could think of off the top of my head: Elizabeth Bennet ducking out of the rain and running into Mr. Darcy in the faux Grecian temple (Pride and Prejudice), Lady Dedlock seeking cover from the sudden rain in the same place as Esther Summerson and recognizing her for the daughter she had to give up (Bleak House), Arthur Clenham grabbing Little Dorrit out of the rain into a tea shop (Little Dorrit), and Captain Wentworth stepping out of a rain storm to find and misinterpret Anne Elliot's escort by William Elliot (Persuasion). I was always a bit skeptical of these convenient rainstorms, but swept along by the story, I didn't care too much.

However, it's an actual fact of English weather (at least here in the Cotswolds). Yesterday I went out for a walk on a sunny morning. I met Molly, the chocolate lab, and her person, Gordon. I watched Molly frolic happily with her friend Esther, a yellow lab mix, under the wonderful sunlight. A bit later, 1/2-hour into my walk, I turned around and started for home. And then I noticed that storm clouds had suddenly arrived. There was a drop here and there, and then it became a bit more steady. I picked up my pace. I thought I might get home before I was too wet, but then suddenly, there was a black Volkswagen stopped by my side with none other than my husband worried about me in the rain and come to pick me up. A heroine in my own English novel rescued by her handsome Mr. Darcy.