Rain, Rain, Rain

One night, I woke to the rattling in my roof. I lay in bed listening to the pounding of the rain and the increasing strength of the wind. My metal corrugated roof made so much sound I was convinced my roof was going to blow away. I flashed my light around looking for leaks. I found one spot where the water pooled and dripped through my rice bad ceiling. I placed a bucket to catch the water and tried to fall back asleep attempting to put aside my worries of the roof.

Storm clouds are approaching

In the morning I woke to find a skylight. One sheet of corrugate folded over causing light to shine inside my house. I considered myself lucky because when I went outside to survey the damage I saw one man's roof completely blown away and my host brother's grass roof fell off. My roof was an easy fix and I survived my first rain storm in village.

This storm was one of the many storms I have seen come and go. The rainy season lasts from June to September. During the month of August it rains almost everyday. I like the rainy season more than the hot/dry season. The rains bring a cool breeze and the barren wasteland turns green. Walking to the next village, I felt as if I was in a golf course due to the thin layer of green and scattered trees. Now the weeds are over head high. The rainy season is also the work season. Everyone plows, plants, or weeds the fields in the mornings and evenings almost everyday until the end of July.

Woman walking through a field

When it is rainy I usually go inside my house and read to wait for the storm to pass. Most Peace Corps Volunteers spend a lot of time reading during the rainy season.