The London I Remember

At the risk of being cliché, this is the London I remember.

I know that it couldn't really have rained the entire time that I lived here. I have plenty of pictures of London with clear weather. I have memories of great sunny (not to say sweltering) days. But for some reason, the fact that today was drizzly overcast, and gray all day seems to have really set off a flood of memories.

This truly is the London I remember. All the times that I remember riding my bicycle in the cold, drizzly, windy, damp, and dank weather bring back the happy days I lived here. Yes, I said happy. As sick as it may seem, I think very kindly of the time that I spent peddling my bicycle through the rain because I had to be somewhere.

I'd have cycled into Surbiton on a nice afternoon to take the train into town to meet with friends only to return to Waterloo in a drizzle, retrieve my bicycle from the Surbiton Rail Station bike park in a downpour, and return to The Villa as the rain broke and the sunset over the Thames.

The sunset over Middlesex is spectacular this evening after a day ranging from a light drizzle to a light rain. It has been cold and wet all day but the evening looks as if it holds promise for tomorrow. Besides, all this rain keeps England so green! There is, after all, a bright side to everything!

Wherever you are today, I hope you will be able to see the bright side to your day!

Don Bergquist - 10 August 2010 - Wembley, Middlesex, UK