The Moment I Noticed I Was Having Fun

No, I did not get wet today, I got soaked.

Left the house at 2:30 pm to take a peek at a group of cyclists from the Friedensinitiative (peace initiative; Pacemakers), who were touring in memory of Hiroshima August 6, 1945.
The were supposed to be in Ramstein at the West Gate of the airport and/or the Flugtag Memorial (Ramstein airshow disaster 1988) at 3:30 pm.
I was in time, so was the rain. Heavy rain.
I had to use my new hooded raincape for the bicycle. I "curled" up on a bench at the memorial and waited for the group to arrive.
It rained and rained, thunder etc. Finally I heard the cyclists on the street above. Only one man came walking down the path to the memorial in the pouring rain to lay down a bouquet of white roses.
The water was bucketing down and there was only a quick "Guten Tag" between us. It was impossible to do more talking.
The man doesn't know it, but I knew who he was the moment I saw him. I had emailed him before, sending him newspaper articles and pictures from an American newspaper I had saved from the airshow disaster in 1988, where he lost his wife and daughter.
For years he was trying to figure out his families whereabouts immediately after the disaster, when he was severely burned in hospital and his familiy died at some other place. He was hoping to find his loved ones on the pictures.

His wifes and daughters names are on the memorial. He doesn't know that I always think about him when I rest at the memorial. I knew he was cycling with the Friedensinitiative from the newspaper, but really did not expect to see him. I don't know if I would have been brave enough to talk to him more if it hadn't been raining so much...

Today was one of the days when I didn't care about the rain and the weather and everything else on my way home.
The water came down and I was cycling under my raincape, I saw no one else in the woods (only some animals) and I was having fun!
I cycled 10 of 19 km in the rain and enjoyed crossing all the puddles like a child.

Next time I take shower gel with me!

8:00 pm 19,7°C