Heavy rain may fall

The horizon darkens and the air holds still. Heat presses down on the fields while, in the distance, thunderheads begin to rise. The ground waits for the sudden rain that could arrive at any moment.

Taiu tokidoki furu (Heavy rain may fall) closes out the season of Greater Heat. In Japan, early August is prime time for sudden downpours, known as “guerrilla rainstorms” (ゲリラ豪雨), where rainfall can exceed 100 mm (about 4 inches) per hour. The term entered public use in the late 2000s as news outlets began reporting on flash floods caused by these hyper-local storms. Tokyo averages around 5 to 6 inches (about 120 to 150 mm) of rain in August, much of it arriving in short, intense bursts (More Info).

Rice paddies swell with these showers. The water refreshes tired stalks, but too much weight can topple them, so farmers watch the sky and brace their fields. The same rains that soothe the soil can carve gullies and flood valleys in a single afternoon.

Storms like these call to mind Susanoo-no-Mikoto, the storm god in Japan’s ancient chronicles. In the Kojiki and Nihon Shoki, he is described as bringing destructive gales and torrential rains, yet his actions also opened waterways and made the land fertile (Further Reading).

When the torrents fall, they strip the heat from the air and leave the land glistening. Last night, a storm passed through where I live and dropped the temperature from 100 °F (38 °C) to 80 °F (27 °C) overnight. It was the first sign that summer’s hold is loosening and autumn is on the way.