The air felt like a steam room. My clothes stuck to my skin and I felt like I had the weight of the sky on my shoulders. My family followed behind me, frantically trying to catch up. The jungle was silent, as if the entire forest held its breath.

My head throbbed. My feet ached. An explosion of green is everywhere I looked. That’s right. Hawaii. My shoes just moved ahead of me like they had a mind of their own. I just wanted to go back to the hotel to sleep off my headache.

couldnt’t wait to get to the waterfall and just sit down to rest, and possibly take a nap. As we neared the waterfall, I could hear the roar of the falling water, and I quickened my pace.

“Stop, you are going too fast, slow down,” complained my sister. “I’m sleepy.”

“We are almost there,” I reassured her.

Suddenly, the trees opened up to reveal the looming waterfall that towered over us. The crashing water, falling from 250 feet above roared, an unearthly sight. The sight of the falls took our breaths away, and I sat down to rest. My family sat down as well. I leaned on a rock and closed my eyes.

Drop, drop. Out of the blue, it started pouring, like someone turned on a faucet. The raindrops hit my face and I smiled. Then I laughed at the thought that we came all the way to Hawaii for sunshine, yet it was pouring. Other hikers grumbled about their bad luck and tried to leave as quickly as possible.

“Let’s go,” whined my sister. “I just want to go back to the hotel.”

My mom said something but I didn’t pay attention. I was too busy looking up at the raindrops falling onto my face. It felt like a combination of mist and a shower, cool and loose. My muscles loosened. The rain soaked my clothes, my shoes, my hair. I suddenly felt like I could run a marathon.

“Let’s go now,” my dad said impatiently.

“Can we stay to put our feet in the water?” I asked, as if I hadn’t heard him.

“No it’s too cold. Let’s go now.”

My family immediately head back the way we came, but I hung in the back to marvel at the new, wet world unleashed. It was like all my burdens were washed away and I felt like a baby bird taking off on its first flight.

The trees surrounding me had a new look, a fresher, greener tint that made them look much younger than they were before. Everywhere I looked I could feel and smell the freshness of it all in the air. I was hungrily consuming the sights of the new world around me.

As I hiked back on the hiking trail, I looked around me with newfound awareness and wonder, and I began to notice that my throbbing headache was slowly receding, like a predator when it sees a new threat when trying to catch its prey. It was as if it were magic. The magical drops of rain relieved me from all the pain, sharpening my senses, and giving me new energy.

When we got back to the car, I realized that my headache had completely disappeared. Right then, I realized that I truly did appreciate the precious gift that the rain had bestowed.