[radagastly]

First, let me say that I am "ainur." I lost my password in a server (or provider) change, and recreated myself as "radagastly."

I am still convinced that Goldberry's "washing day" was more than just a coincidental rain. I also believe that the reason that Tom Bombadil kept the Hobbits in his house for an extra day was because he knew that they would be in more danger if he let them go while the Witch-King of Angmar was still prowling the Old Forest and the Barrow Downs. Goldberry's "rain" washed away the Hobbits footprints, and any sign of their passing, but re-quelled the Old Forest, calmed them, off-setting the Lord of the Nazgul's taint. Rinsed it away, as it were. They would never have made it to the Barrow Downs without the Old Forest letting them go. That was Tom's choice, and Goldberry's. Not the "Forest's."

I think that if Tom had been more aware of the terrible dangers facing Frodo, he would have accompanied the hobbits the whole way. After the barrow, he rode with them all the way to the road, which marked the bounds of his little realm. To this day, I still can't figure out how Aragorn was in exactly the right spot! Of course, he does have keen eyesight and may have been able to spot them from far away. I'm sure that Tom Bombadil on Fatty Lumpkin would be quite a sight.

I suspect that Tom Bombadil has very keen eyesight as well. He very probably brought the Hobbits to just the right place on his border so that Aragorn could hear their conversation. I never saw coincidence in that, only design.