Gloomy Day

Today I was truly happy, partly due to the weather. Even though it wasn't by any means a beautiful day outside, I enjoyed everything about it. The sky was overcast, the temperature warm and comfortable, and the sun wasn't shining. I could feel that at any moment the sky would rumble and pelt down rain on me, and yet I decided to leave the house for a brisk walk. I need to get out for a while.
I often take this route now, the only semi-flat route around this mountainous area. It holds so much to discover each time I walk. I find bubbling streams alongside the road, open wells dated with numbers like 1882, blonde cows grazing on subtle hillsides, foals and their mothers beside forests that look misty and enchanted, grape vines that release a sweet intoxicating smell, children playing in their gated yards, and red tulips pushing their way up from the ground. I'm always so amazed at these things, I often stop on the side of the road and gaze at them for minutes.
When my mother asks me each and every night in Canada if I'd like to go for a walk with her, I almost always decline the invitation. The idea of walking half of a country mile of pin straight road with nothing but grass and trees on either side makes me cringe. I get bored so easily, even my music can't keep me entertained. But here...here is a different story. The sights, the sounds, the looming mountains dotted with different coloured trees - they make me stare in wonder. It's enough to keep me going for walks as often as I can. I love this about France.
And so how does the weather fit into my ramblings? Why did the weather make me love today so much? Even in Canada, I've loved the warm calm before a thunderstorm. In the summer when the sky is dark and ready to crack with rain and lighting, I love to sit on the porch and wait for it all. There's something magnificent about it, the humidity, the dark sky, the waiting.
Just as I arrived home and settled down on the couch, I watched the sky open up and begin to rain. It was a perfect day.