It’s been raining for two weeks here in Sydney. I've only been here for a couple of years so I couldn’t tell if this was normal, but this was the longest I’ve experienced rain down under. It’s not in my habit to check the weather, so I was a bit surprised when my trainees told me that we were expecting a storm that day. I looked outside through the windows, and it was raining heavily. I could say that this was the worst rain I saw in my short time here in Australia. The rain reminded me of the Philippines. I shared with the class how this weather was pretty typical in the Philippines. I told them that we would have rains that lasted for weeks during the rainy season. We get heavy rainfall in the morning, noon and night. My trainees were shocked by the story. They even asked if I was joking. I told them no. I was serious, at least that’s the way I remembered it. As I was getting ready to go home, I thought about the inconvenience of going home through the rain. The thought reminded me of the worst storm I encountered in the Philippines. This storm bankrupted me. I lost everything that I invested money in. It got me in debt because I needed startup funds. It was the reason I moved my family from my beloved province to Manila. Of course, I have to add the trauma caused by floodwaters as high as rooftops and being stranded with limited supply of food and water. The funny thing was, recalling this experience made me worry less about commuting in the rain. This made me reflect on how past challenges makes us braver, stronger and wiser. The Bible says: James 1:2-4 Count it all joy, my brothers, when you meet trials of various kinds, for you know that the testing of your faith produces steadfastness. And let steadfastness have its full effect, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking in nothing. I walked in the rain that afternoon with a smile on my face. I praised God for the trials that shaped me into the person that I am today.