I Be An Demi-God...

So, I arrived in West Wyalong on Saturday, in the rain. And it rained on Sunday and Monday too. Now, to those of you in the states reading this, particularlly those of you in the Pacific Northwest, you're reading that and likely thinking "Big whoop, three days of rain, so what?" Well, here, it was a regarded as something of a minor miracle. Consider this: No one here can remember when the last time they got three consecutive days of rain was.

Minor miracle indeed. And, as these things often are, the event was associated with an agent, if you will. In this case, me, and my arrival. Rain bringer, that's me! "Bless you Father, you brought the rain with you, dint-ya?" It is really heartbreaking to see these farmers hanging on and hoping against hope that this will be the year it breaks. I've never seen anything quite like it in the states, even though I lived through a few years of drought in Western Washington growing up. But a Western Washington drought and an Australian bush drought are Light Years apart, it seems to me.

And right now, these farmers are biting their lips and trying to figure out how much to risk in a gamble. See, with three days of rain, they can plant a crop to be harvested later in the year. A crop that will grow and maybe break their run of bad luck, harvest-wise. It will grow IF there is more rain for the rest of the year. So what it comes down to is:

a) Plant and hope we get enough rain to get back on a real farming track.

b) Plant and we don't get enough rain and guess what, you're now SEVEN years in debt with your farm rather than six.

You understand why they bite their lips when considering these things. You also understand why three days of rain represents hope for them.

Me? I'm a little uneasy with the Legendary Rain God status I achieved merely by showing up. See, I have visions of "The Wicker Man," a cheesy horror fantasy film from 1973. Only this version doesn't have Brit Ecklund doing her musical number. Perhaps I fear it will all end in a druidic style sacrifice if and when the rains do stop (even someone raised in the Puget Sound area knows that eventually they WILL stop.) I have a vision of being led out into a wheat field somewhere, and like the kings who had failed to produce good harvests for the people, my throat will be cut to appease some Outback desert God, then a new king will be appointed. I doubt it will come to that. But the way my luck runs, you can't rule it out.

While I've been typing this a new weather report just came over the wireless (that would be the device known as the radio in the Northern Hemisphere):

It will start raining again this afternoon and we can expect more rain for the next three days.

I will invite you all to the dedication of the statue when it is announced.