Rainy Days, Cozy Ways

A dull Thursday; gray sky, no birds, no chirping. As I stepped out of the house, little drops of water fell from the sky. I had put on my clothes, ready to go for an occasion. Disappointed, I sluggishly went back inside and waited for the rain to perform its magic. I live in the western part of Nigeria. In Nigeria, we have two seasons; rainy season and harmattan season. The rainy season is characterized by downpour of rain which varies from one geographical region to another. In some parts, the rainfall is heavy, while other parts get limited rainfall. On the other hand, harmattan season is characterized by fog, dust, and heat.

I was born and raised in the western part of Nigeria, and one thing I cannot complain about is the weather conditions over here. Each season has its unique features. Currently, it is cold in my town. I have not been to other parts of Nigeria, but with the stories I hear points out that they experience flunctuated temperatures; during the cold season, they experience extreme cold, and during the hot season, they experience it extremely. My favorite weather is the cold weather. It is very easy to snuggle up in your blanket or cover yourself in multiple layers of thick clothes. When it comes to enjoying the weather, nothing beats watching anime (or your favorite genre) on your bed while it is raining cats and dogs outside.

For me, I just can't stand the heat. In my hostel, there are many rooms, so when it's hot, we feel it five times more than others. I remember during my first year in university, the heat was on another level. I had a roommate at that time, and sometimes his friends and my friends would visit. Since we were all boys, we'd go shirtless. To make matters worse, we often had no electricity, so there was no fan. We survived mainly by using books as makeshift fans.

As I mentioned earlier, there are two seasons in my country; the rainy season and the dry season. The time that rainy seasons starts differs from one state to another. Over here, the rainy season started around March. Well, we had been getting drizzles since the middle of February. The frequent drizzles marked the beginning of the rainy season. Then the real deal started in March. We got our first downpour in the middle of March. As usual, the first rain was heavy.

There are two sides to every coin. One of the consequences of this rain soaked environment is the rapid growth of weeds. During the raining season, weeds grow faster than crops, competing with them for water, sunlight and nutrients. The most annoying thing about them is that they grow rapidly without tending to them. The sprout up through the cracks in the sidewalk, compound, farmland, and other places.

The road becomes mini swimming pools. Nigeria is blessed with good soil. So many countries cannot grow crops like we do over here. Sadly, there are some sectors that are lagging behind, and one of them is bad roads. Here in my town, it is difficult to see a road without potholes. It becomes worse during rainy season. All the holes becomes filled with water, increasing the risks of accidents.

Surviving the rainy season can be a real challenge for some people. It really depends on one's skin and health. Personally, I find it easy to adapt - all I need to do is bundle up in thick clothes and I'm good to go. However, my grandma has a tougher time. She needs to use ointments and other remedies to keep herself warm, as she gets cold easily and sometimes falls sick.

This is my entry to INLEO monthly prompt. Day 2. The topic is: What is the weather like in your town.

All images in this post are mine.

Thanks for reading.