Is That Rain I Smelled?

August of 2010 was very very hot. It was our first month in our new homeland. I remember going from one office to another in the middle of the day, sweating and very thirsty. Soon I learned to go earlier and bring along a beverage. Finally arriving home and on went the AC so we could rest a bit.

This year was a leap year, which means most holidays etc., fall a bit later in the month(s). That might be why when August 2011 came around the mornings and evenings got much cooler, and I started seeing clouds in the mornings. The first Shabbat in Av, Lil Shabbos, I was amazed to smell rain. I know it was rain. I saw moistened surfaces. However this past Shabbat grey clouds blanketed much of Yerushalayim. This was a shocker. Is the 'Israeli' Fall on the way? Thought it was going to rain, I could smell it in the air. But where I live there was no rain. Just a sky overcast with grey clouds as far as I could see.

It would be interesting to know what others thought of this phenomenon?

What in the world does this mean? Are we to receive blessings early this year, before Sukkos? Are these clouds a foreboding symbol of days to come? Are the protests stimulating the water element in the skies?this might mean rain "not in its season"!

The Torah says our blessings come down to us as rains in their season. We are an agricultural (and eclectically inventive) society, so the rain (and blessings) are vital for us - being communication from Shomayim as to our worthiness.

B"H the sun finally appeared and the rest of the afternoon was very pleasant indeed.