The Pouring Rain .

At home, when it pours, it rains for a short couple of hours and then it's done. In Clemson, when it pours, it pours all day. And then continues to pour for about three days thereafter. We haven't had monsoon weather like this past week since freshman year. Now I'm not usually one to complain about the weather, but when it pours all day, and you still get soaked even when you have an umbrella, those days just suck. I don't mind cold. I don't mind rain... unfortunately the combination of those two things in addition to wind make for some pretty awful weather. It makes for packed buses and long walks across campus with a sub-par umbrella. It makes for wet socks, wet pants, and discomfort all day. And all of that sucks.

But the important thing to remember? It could always be worse. If I complain about my shoes being wet, I could be without shoes. If I complain about wet pants and socks, I could be without any extra pairs of pants. If I complain about the cold, I could be without a home and without heat. If I complain about my umbrella, it's possible I could have none.

On the days that we perceive to suck, the ones that seems like they couldn't get any worse, the ones that we can't seem to believe are even happening, it's important to remember that we are so much better off than so many others. Rain, albeit pouring, is but an inconvenience. Wet is just a feeling, a minor temporary condition of the clothes you are wearing. How strange that we can indulge in the hot water and wonderful wet feeling of a shower, and yet being out in the rain is uncomfortable.

When the going gets tough, let us always remember that things could be worse. We could be in worse situations. And as long as we remember that, we will, over time, become a better person.