On the weather

“Don’t you like a rather foggy day in a wood in autumn? You’ll find we shall be perfectly warm sitting in the car.”

Jane said she’d never heard of anyone liking fogs before but she didn’t mind trying. All three got in.

“That’s why Camilla and I got married,” said Denniston as they drove off. “We both like Weather. Not this or that kind of weather, but just Weather. It’s a useful taste if one lives in England.”

“However did you learn to do that, Mr. Denniston?” said Jane. “I don’t think I could ever learn to like rain and snow.”

“It’s the other way round,” said Denniston. “Everyone begins as a child liking Weather. You learn the art of disliking it as you grow up. Haven’t you ever noticed it on a snowy day? The grown-ups are all going about with long faces, but look at the children — and the dogs? They know what snow’s made for.

“I’m sure I hated wet days as a child,” said Jane.

“That’s because the grown-ups kept you in,” said Camilla. “Any child loves the rain if it’s allowed to go out and paddle about in it.”

–C.S. Lewis, That Hideous Strength

This seems like a useful taste where I live, too! Something to work on…