↓ Evelyn’s Response

Darlene, fourteen years on a piece of land is long enough to know it the way you know a face — and you would notice a new face. Trust that. Dale is doing what people who love us often do when they’re worried: he is offering you the most boring explanation available, because boring is a comfort. It is a kind instinct, even when it’s wrong.

Here is what I’d like you to consider. First, the practical: note the timing. Not just whether it’s raining, but the direction of the rain, the temperature drop before the rain arrives, and whether the figure appears before the first drops or after. In my experience with field presences — particularly the tall, pale, stationary kind — they are often responsive to atmospheric pressure changes rather than the rain itself. The rain is what you can see. The pressure drop is what’s actually doing the inviting. A barometer from any hardware store will tell you more than three more months of watching will. Once you understand the pattern, you understand the boundary, and a boundary you understand is one you can work with. Keep a log. Plain paper, plain pen. Do not use your phone — the light draws attention you may not want.