Rain at Nightfall
The black cloud that crept over the wood prevented my seeing the magpies that were flitting about in- the tops of the trees; and even the pigeon went in to cover at the first drops of rain, and was lost to sight. That was the motnent when I should have made for home, but I wanted to see more birds come in to roost, and moved under some firs. Rain beats down through the " holes" in a wood, but the natural cover of conifer branches runs the first trickles of water away from the base of the tree. It is only after five or ten minutes that one realises how mistaken one has been in one's impression of being in shelter. The wood began to sigh with the gusts of rain. At first two or three large drops fell down my neck. My hands became wet, and, when I could stand it no longer, I stumbled along the path and out into the open. The magpies shot up over the side of the wood and skimmed in to new shelter, complaining as they went. I braved the water-laden nettles, the rushes and the gorse, getting thoroughly drenched for my foolhardiness, while the rain sang in the hedges and swept the open fields.
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