Sitting at my desk, trying to edit, watching the rain pound the swimming pool. The sky is so overcast that the whole scene ought to be muted, but one of the plants has toppled over, in a mass of green ferny leaves, and the plants in the sturdier container have started to bloom again, strikingly magenta, and the pool itself is a solid mass of turquoise. It’s lovely, even though rainy days always make me sad.