The Journey of Robby the Raindrop

By Morgan Overholtzer
4th Grade, Gratton Elementary School
Pennie Segna, Teacher
Stanislaus County
Illustrated by Sheldon High School

One sunny day in August, Robby the raindrop was floating along on a cloud with his friends. They were on their way to take water to the dry Central Valley in California. Suddenly the wind started to blow and the cloud got heavier and darker. Robby looked down and said, "I see a lot of peach and almond orchards. There is a lot of hay and gardens growing. It looks like they need a lot of water to grow their food. I think I'll jump off here!" So down, down, down Robby fell, passing other clouds and raindrops.

He finally landed on the roof of a house, "Splat," and slid off the edge of a roof top. Robby was dumped right into a garden where he landed on a leaf. Robby the raindrop blinked his eyes and looked around and saw squash, carrots, and cucumbers growing in the garden. When he jumped off of the leaf to look around, he realized that the soil around the plants was very dry. Robby knew the soil needed him because he could put moisture into the ground to help plants grow. But, he really didn't realize just how much the soil needed him.

"Help, help," said Robby. "This ground is soaking me up."

He watched as the plant's roots took him in and he started on a journey through the plant's stems until he popped right out of the leaves again. As he was glistening on top of the plant's leaf, he watched sprinklers running. Sprinklers are used to bring up water from the wells deep in the ground to keep the grass healthy and green.

Pretty soon he heard a bubbling noise and looked under the fence to see what it was. The neighbor was irrigating his field, and water was gurgling out of an irrigation ditch to keep the almond trees alive. Water was spreading out over the field for as far as he could see! He knew the farmers of California depend on the snow in the winter. When it melts it fills the dams and comes rushing down the canals during the spring and summer to all the farms.

As he was wondering where to go next, Robby heard a loud "moooo" noise that made him jump! He carefully looked around until he saw a big black and white animal. It was chewing grass and slurping up water. That thing must be a cow, Robby thought. Of course they need a lot of water to make milk! "Wow, they sure are big, beautiful animals," said Robby.

As he turned to go, he slipped and slid down into the gutter by the road. There was so much water gushing down, that he couldn't get his balance. As he zoomed along, he passed the orchard full of trees and the field full of cows. He slid on down the road and fell into the big gutter grate. It was dark and slimy in the pipe that Robby fell into. Soon he was dumped out again, and this time into a river!

As Robby floated along he saw so many interesting things. He passed a family having a picnic by the river and saw the children playing in the water. As he floated on, he watched cows and horses drink water from the river's edge. He also saw bikers and joggers with water bottles, drinking water as they stopped for a rest. People are made up of about 60 percent water, so they need to drink a lot of water every day to keep their bodies hydrated. As Robby the raindrop floated by the big beautiful farms, he realized that everyone was using water!

Wow, I am really important, he thought. Without water like me, plants, animals, and people would not be able to live! So Robby laid his head back and closed his eyes with a happy smile on his face and floated on his way for many miles. It was late in the day when he noticed that the air was changing and he could hear seagulls calling. "I've arrived at the ocean!" Robby exclaimed. He was so excited to be able to float on the ocean waves, but he also knew that he would soon start a new journey. A new water cycle journey, where Robby the raindrop would swiftly evaporate and deliver water again to all living things!