Editor's note: This was written and published before the Auckland floods and Cyclone Gabrielle

Some weather we are having... December was decidedly damp and dreary. Now, the summer break has left no holiday sheltered from the weather systems sweeping through – leaving many of us with a soggy beach towel in our outstretched hands.

I could regale you with tales of Auckland’s north being hit by nearly a month’s worth of rain in a mere 24 hours, State Highway 1 being closed due to flooding to the North and South, and brave Gisborne residents enduring a state of emergency on the East Coast. But you’ve probably already heard about that.

While we have experienced what many of us will say is ‘the worst summer ever’ – and the havoc wreaked on some regions should not be understated – the clouds passing through have provided us with a silver lining – small talk.

As extensive research (published in the Society for Personality and Social Psychology) shows, greater happiness and greater feelings of belonging can be found through daily social interactions with acquaintances – these could be a colleague at work, your coffee barista or, perhaps, someone you have just met at a party.

From my own anecdotal evidence, I know New Zealanders love weather chat. This past week, countless conversations have started with it. Of course, the wind comes up when you’re rushing past someone on a stormy walk, but I’ve noticed the small talk is moving online, rain or shine. When composing an email, an acknowledgement of the one thing at the back of all of our minds seems much more interesting than: ‘I hope this email finds you well’. 

On social media, captions and comments are either calling out for sympathy after being stuck in the bad weather, or celebrating the brief moments of sunshine that seem all the more special now.

As the clouds come and go, the weather is our conduit for connection. In a recent interview with Stuff, meteorologist Ben Noll confirmed that weather chat is the perfect ‘icebreaker’ no matter the season. It’s something that “impacts everything and everyone… when people are pretty divided over a lot of issues”.

Despite attempts at such a positive outlook, windy and wet weather can dampen our mood – as anyone who recently attempted to peg down their tent or arrange an outdoor event can attest. Over longer periods of time, a lack of sunshine can also have serious effects. The Mental Health Foundation recognises Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD) as a form of depression or low mood likely related to a decrease in sunlight hours, which can affect our body’s chemical balances and body clocks. 

One concern I have heard a lot more of, is that this summer is different, the weather is not usually this bad. As a barometer for how we are all feeling, small talk about the weather can lead to deeper conversations, including climate change anxiety. All the more reason to talk about it.

When faced with an unsettling forecast (whether that’s short or long-range) the weather has unique ways of bringing us together. For instance, businesses that offer indoor activities, and that suffered from recent social distancing measures, have welcomed a flood of new customers these past weeks. 

As those who went to the movies will know, heavy rain can be a sign of dark times to come but it can also be embraced for cathartic release. A cinematic downpour visualises the sense of relief that can come after expressing strong feelings. No wonder we still can’t take our eyes off *that* scene in The Notebook.

Last week, Auckland Art Gallery Toi o Tāmaki welcomed 24,000 visitors – a personal best since before the pandemic. Surely, no one understands the power of the weather to convey emotions better than artists. The clouds convey a force of nature for landscape painters such as Joseph Turner, the patter of rain is the preoccupation of great poets like William Wordsworth, and throughout a tumultuous plot, it is the wind that carries Emily Bronte’s Wuthering Heights and its many inspirations.

If nothing else, this weather has been atmospheric. Something we should appreciate in Aotearoa, the land of the long white cloud. In a place full of natural beauty, the sky is our ever-changing canvas, and a conversation starter.