Earlier this week, we finally got some much-needed rain. I was in the kitchen doing some work when the sky started to fill with (welcome) black clouds and this beautiful, brisk, salt-smelling breeze suddenly blew in through the windows facing the water. I immediately got up and put this song on repeat. A bit literal? Maybe, but it felt exactly right.

The song I’m talking about is “I Think It’s Going to Rain Today” by Randy Newman. I think it’s one of the loveliest pieces of music ever written, right up there for me with Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah.” So simple, yet so very effective. Hundreds of people have covered it since Newman first published and recorded it in 1968, but of all the versions I’ve heard, Peter Gabriel’s is by far my favorite.

“I Think It’s Going to Rain Today” by Randy Newman

Broken windows and empty hallways
A pale dead moon in the sky streaked with gray
Human kindness is overflowing
And I think it’s going to rain today

Scarecrows dressed in the latest styles
With frozen smiles to chase love away
Human kindness is overflowing
And I think it’s going to rain today

Lonely, lonely
Tin can at my feet
Think I’ll kick it down the street
That’s the way to treat a friend

Bright before me the signs implore me
Help the needy and show them the way
Human kindness is overflowing
And I think it’s going to rain today

Two and a half years ago, when Hurricane Sandy hit us in New York, my friends in Austin were in the middle of a serious drought. But today, while we could definitely use the rain, poor Texas is in the middle of terrible struggles with storms and flooding. We certainly know what that’s like. Sending love, and wishing an end to their bad weather and a safe and speedy recovery from the disaster. Anyone wishing to make a contribution to the American Red Cross to help with their flood recovery efforts in Texas and Oklahoma may do so here.