In a city, the rain did not fall as it did elsewhere, for it came softly, almost shyly, as if it did not want to disturb the silence that lay between the old stone buildings. The people had become accustomed to the gentle drumming on the roofs, to the petrichor that travelled through the streets whispering the stories of old times. One day, however, the rain changed, for it no longer fell gently on the roofs of the city, but poured down wildly and impetuously on everything. The inhabitants, who knew the rain as their constant companion, sensed a change in the air, and it was as if the rain wanted to tell them something.
Among them lived a girl called Regina, who loved the rain more than anything else. She listened to the drops playing like a symphony on the leaves of the trees and felt how each individual pearl told its own story. That day, when the rain changed its tune, Regina decided to answer its call. She pulled her coat tightly around her and stepped out into the flood. With every step she took, the rain seemed to sing louder, and soon she was dancing through the puddles as if she were part of a prehistoric ritual. The rain enveloped her like a veil, and in that moment she felt connected to the world around her.
The story of the rain was one of renewal, of letting go and starting anew. It washed away the old stories and brought fresh thoughts, new dreams. Regina was the first to realise that the rain was not just water, but life itself, flowing in myriad forms and nourishing everything in its path. When the rain finally subsided and the first rays of sun kissed the wet streets, Regina was no longer the same, for she had understood the language of rain and knew that every storm, no matter how wild, eventually passes and makes way for a new beginning.
Translated from German: Rain by Werner Stangl