HAIL STORM
by Michele Lourie
That feeling of eerie silence
When a breathless world seems at rest
One black speck on a sulky day
Seeking safety of the nest.
Comes the rumbling, deep and menacing
Lingering far and away
Branches of tall tree canopies
Languidly swish and sway.
Warning pellets of rain attack
Peppering thirsty ground,
A steadily growing onslaught
With accompanying drumming sound.
Soon it becomes a crescendo
To a crash, as all hearts race,
Rain sheets blinding the vision
Wind driving a frightening pace.
One flash, another, zig-zagging
All colour leached from on high
Blinding light, booming noise raging
Turbulent clouds rolling by.
We pretend the Gods of the ancients
Are vengefully stamping around
Roaring and tossing in anger
Glass-like pebbles to litter the ground.
So we cower, fearful and helpless
Against Nature’s show of might
Knowing we’re truly defenceless
That we cannot mount a fight.
Then …. as suddenly as it presented
The hailstorm fades away
Leaving a gift of serenity
The promise of a clear, new day.
