Rainy days

The Monsoons in Kerala do not take the pattern of incessant rains continuing for weeks. Virtually it rains for a few hours with sunny interludes. Occasionally the rains might stretch on for a few days but the respite of sunshine is never far away. People look forward to seeing the sun peep through the wet palm fronds and rain drenched green. These golden interludes provide an equilibrium to life's natural flow. Kerala has mainly two rainy seasons. The Southwest Monsoon that arrives in the month of June is called Edavappathy, as it comes in the middle of the month of Edavam on the Malayalam Calendar. Mid October witnesses the arrival of the Northeast Monsoon. In the Malayalam calendar this month is called Thulam and hence the name Thulavarsham meaning the 'The Rains in Thulam'. Now the gathering rain clouds are from the Bay of Bengal. These bearers of rain hurry to Kerala through the Palakkad Gap in the Western Ghats. The swirling, jostling, billowing dark messenger of life sailing on the wings of northeast winds is a breathtaking sight to behold.