The 5 photos that show even among the devastation of Australia's bushfires, there's still hope.

Let’s just take a moment to focus on hope.

It’s been a terrifying start to 2020 for Australia and Australians.

Five months into what feels like never-ending bushfires, Australia is craving good news.

This has been our reality for so long. Post continues after video.

It’s times like this, we just need a sign that there is light at the end of the very smoky tunnel.

We need hope.

Hope that our government will make the changes necessary.

Hope that Mother Nature will be able to work with us to rebuild from the devastation.

Last week and across the weekend, we finally received that glint of hope.

It rained. Finally. Poured, in fact.

It actually rained too much in some parts. There were thousands of calls for help to the SES, and hail the size of golf balls fell in Melbourne, Canberra, Sydney and up the NSW coast. So much so that homes and cars were left damaged and destroyed.

 

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These photos of Parliament House in Canberra were taken only 2 weeks apart. Link in bio.

A post shared by Mamamia (@mamamiaaus) on Jan 20, 2020 at 4:40pm PST

But amongst the bad weather news, and the biggest hail I think many of us have ever seen in our lives, it’s time to seek out those stories of hope.

The climate crisis isn’t going anywhere and the need for a new bushfire preparation plan remains. Our weather is only going to continue to act out in extremes. The recent downpours won’t end the drought, or put out all of the bushfires. Our government isn’t changing its tact on clime change anytime soon, and there are still years of rebuilding ahead for entire communities decimated by the fires.

But. Let’s just hit pause on that for a moment.

It’s important at times like this to also focus on the good.

Here are just four of our favourite stories of hope and joy from recent days.

1. 43mm of much pleaded for rain.

In 2018, a photo of Rhonda’s 83-year-old father praying for rain went viral.

The King’s Bingara property is 150km northwest of Tamworth in New South Wales.

For more than two years, their dams have run dry.

But on the weekend, they got 43mm of rain, and the difference is insane.

“Still, a very long way to go, but, at least I can save my beautiful speckle park cattle for a bit longer. May the rain come soon, fall steady, and stay long,” Rhonda wrote on Facebook, alongside a photo of her relieved dad.

2.Regeneration has started.

Watching our country burn, is devastating.

But the sign of new life, mere weeks after disaster, is the dose of hope we all need right now.

Seeing those little green sprouts emerge from the ashes feels like nature’s way of saying, “Don’t worry we’ve got backups.”

3. 14-month-old Lacey's first time in the rain.

If this photo could be inhaled we'd do it. It makes our hearts SWELL.

Emma Sewell shared this photo on Facebook after her daughter Lacey experienced rain for the first time.

"When seeing rain for the first time in your life is like going to Disney Land. Ended up with 12mm a couple days ago and another 9mm yesterday. Very very isolated showers but it’s a hopeful start," she wrote last week.

 

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Our hearts are melting! Emma Sewell shared this photo of her daughter Lacey playing in rain for the first time. ⁠ ⁠ "When seeing rain for the first time in your life is like going to Disney Land ???? ended up with 12mm a couple days ago and another 9mm yesterday. Very very isolated showers but it’s a hopeful start! ????????"⁠ ⁠ (Image via Facebook, Emma Sewell)

A post shared by Mamamia (@mamamiaaus) on Jan 16, 2020 at 4:00pm PST

4. Russell Crowe's incredible before and after.

Actor Russell Crowe's before-and-after photos of his place, taken just 10 weeks apart, had our jaws on the floor.

You can't look at this comparison photo and not smile.

How cool is that?

 

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My place 10 weeks ago after the fire had gone through, and this morning after a big weekend of rain.

A post shared by Russell Crowe (@russellcrowe) on Jan 19, 2020 at 4:49pm PST

5. Celebrations in Tingha, NSW.

In Tingha, New South Wales, the celebrations are ongoing.

Steph's before and after of their once parched dam, is another beautiful reminder of what a difference a good downpour can make.

But the photos of the family playing in their newly filled creeks is what really gave us life.

While our country burns, floods, hails and storms - let's not forget to celebrate the little wins.

We've got a long road ahead, but these photos go to show that a little rain can go a hell of a long way.

As a media company, Mamamia has never and will never publish any articles or opinions that deny the existence or impact of climate change. Research shows that at least 97 per cent of climate scientists agree: climate change is real and driven by human activity. We vow to choose decades of rigorous, peer-reviewed research over falsehoods that will only stall action on the climate emergency.

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