“It’s a beautiful day, isn’t it?”
Rain or shine, everyone has endured a seemingly meaningless conversation about the weather just to have something to say during lulls in conversation or as small talk. Weather talk is so common that you may not even need to check the weather app to get the forecast. All you have to do is be at a check-out line or on an elevator ride, and that information will inevitably be relayed to you.
“Some weather we are having!”
But why is the weather, out of all topics, always the default? Probably because the weather affects everybody. Maybe because the weather isn’t necessarily political or controversial. Even when people have different preferences about the weather, it isn’t a contested topic. We let it be and say, “to each their own.” The reason this topic never dies out is that it is impossible to be inseparable from the weather. The weather outside impacts how you dress, the plans you either make or cancel and your general mood. It’s the first thing you notice when you step outside.
“I heard it’s supposed to rain this week, stay dry out there.”
Part of the beauty of the weather is how collective it is. We may have different opinions on rain or sunshine, but we all experience weather the same. Talking about the weather with a passerby is a low-stakes way of connecting with another person. If I’m shivering and there is an icicle forming out of my nose, most likely you probably are too. If it’s a nice, sunny day, there is more spontaneity in the air. On a rainy day, you know that almost everyone is dying to go lay in their bed and watch the rain from their window.
“How’s the weather?”
When used in photography and paintings, we can understand the power of the weather and the emotions it conveys. Rain is what inspires great poets and writings. But these emotions don’t necessarily translate into real-world conversations. Or they do? When someone asks you “How’s the weather?” you answer not only with the weather observances, but also with how it makes you feel. Even if it may be in a very subtle and subconscious way. By just describing the weather, we also end up revealing our feelings behind it.
“Stay warm out there!”
Small talk about the weather might be the best small talk that is out there. Talking about the weather doesn’t make you a poor conversationalist. It is one of those conversations that doesn’t have a limit, which makes it all the more interesting. Weather talk is a language of its own. The weather is truly atmospheric, as it always ends up being a topic of conversation when there is nothing else in the air to talk about. And if there wasn’t weather to talk about, what should you talk about instead?