Stormy Weather

It's always somewhere else  
 
A blip on the Doppler radar  
somewhere outside of  
my town  
the Skycam shakes  
as rain and hail hit the lens  
and recorded thunder crashes through my television  
better than any movie,  
 
I watch the strip  
of county names lined up in red  
across the bottom of my screen  
like brave little soldiers  
one after another:  
Watches  
Warnings  
Thunderstorms  
Tornados  
Flash floods  
 
We clutch our flashlights and radios  
Just in case  
Line up our candles  
On a commercial break  
Keep the matches  
where we can light them  
in the dark  
 
Ominous photos of green sky  
and black clouds  
are taken by brave viewers  
in the eye of the storm  
and presented for my warning  
"STAY INSIDE YOUR HOUSE!"  
the weatherman says.  
 
And miss this?  
 
I should be as lucky as they are.  
 
The sky is only gray  
in my yard  
trees sway to a gentle wind  
against the backdrop  
of siren echoes  
Their leaves soak up misty rain,  
relief from the last days'  
heat wave  
 
I look heavenward  
like a child waiting for Santa Claus  
I smell the water in the air  
condensing by the minute  
as the temperature dives  
and thunder roars  
and the streak of perfect white-yellow  
tears open the clouds  
like a spear  
 
and it's here  
at last

 
Water once taken from earth and stream  
returned  
to land.  
It's all part of the cycle  
Nature's catharsis  
 
My heart rejoices.  
After any good cry  
We all feel  
so much better