RAIN To begin with, I refer to a Shakespearean analogy:
‘‘ It (The quality of mercy) droppeth as the gentle rain from heaven upon the earth beneath: it is twice blessed; it blesseth him that gives, and him that takes; ” We certainly experienced more than our fair share of rain earlier this summer. After a long cold spring and then a fleeting glimpse of the longed for summer to come, we were ‘ treated ’ to June and July weather conditions, which have yielded relatively low temperatures, and higher than usual precipitation. At least the myriad crops, trees, and other plant life, including bracken (that plant the path restorers love to hate) thrive on it!
No doubt, local under and over ground reservoirs and aquifers will be replenished. These are vital to our livelihoods, so in that respect we can be thankful of a rather rainy climate. And perhaps, if last year replicates itself, we may anticipate warmer weather to come. Also I am aware that the recent rains are moderate in comparison with elsewhere. Some parts of the world have experienced unprecedented deluges. The media presents us with images of inundated cities, valleys and lowlands. We are informed that
such events, which one might expect every fifty years, now occur every five, as an approximation. These events are attributable, we are advised, to climate change. Of course in the Tropics, the population experiences deluges and other violent weather phenomena from the start of the summer months, which are ‘ something else again! ’ We are generally fortunate, living in a temperate zone, not to be subject to such meteorological ferocity, as a general rule, although as with every rule there are exceptions. I am reminded of the old adage (unattributed): - ‘ Into every life, a little rain must fall ’ Those who have lived in Midmar over the last few years will particularly remember the rains last autumn, when a month of rainfall was delivered from ‘ on high ’ within a few hours causing local flooding and associated damage. I personally was concerned that there was no regional or Government agency able to offer any recompense or assistance, for domestic tax payers, in what appeared to be a local emergency, although I read that businesses may have been eligible to apply for damage claims. Individual householders were very much left to their own devices to rectify matters, or not. I say this as significant floods often need to be addressed on a large scale, given the devastation which may ensue. If there is significant rainfall, as occurred a few years ago in the hills above Ballater, this led to a rise in the river Dee, and much flooding and damage to property in the township. I believe that any reparations, such as there were, may have taken years to fall into place. If any reader can offer advice on such issues, should such circumstances recur, which is not conjecturally unlikely, it would be most welcome.
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