Birds sing from leafy trees
and verdant banks beside the streams–
from gentle rain in spring a droplet gleams
on iris and rose, and petrichor rises in the air
washed clean, carried on a crisp, fresh breeze
(with pollen that makes us cough and wheeze)
but beautiful the shades of green
in days that lengthen, until the sun’s heat
bakes ground and street.
Summery steam rises in air that’s sticky and thick,
and the sky darkens, the clouds turn black,
as the stormy wind enters, blows pages from their stack,
I close the window when the rain comes—plothering, not pitter-pat,
there’s thunder and lightning, and gusts that sway the trees about–
then the power goes out—
the temperature falls and rises again, the rain clouds part,
and through them, the sun casts a glow
across the sky–look, a double rainbow.
Rainbow at Pitman Golf Club, Pitman, NJ June 2020
For Sarah’s rain prompt on dVerse. Earlier this morning, my husband saw this rainbow at the golf course where he’s working. Later, we got a severe thunderstorm, and our power went out, but it’s been restored. So, I reversed the order for the poem.
Yesterday and today: Merril's historical musings 
Beautiful, Merril. Your top photo is stunning! Thanks for sharing!
Thank you very much, Jill!
I like the tension building up to the power going out.
Thank you, Frank!
Sweet and appropriate for the first week of entering Hurricane Season.
😉
Thank you! Ugh. Do you live in a hurricane area? We get them sometimes here in NJ, but last night we had a tornado warning. Not fun.
Yeah, South Carolina…I think this might be a volatile year for both hurricanes and tornadoes but I’m still hoping we just get tropical storms!
So I’ll hope you just get dust devils! (I’m from the west, maybe that doesn’t translate to NJ?)
Oh, good luck with that! Yeah, I know what dust devils are, but I don’t ever remember it being that dry here. We get hot, humid weather here, so more likely to get hurricanes and tornadoes like you. I’m right across the Delaware from Philadelphia–kind of flat and swampy like much of S.C., I imagine.
…and let’s hope with the rainbow the power returned!
The rainbow actually came before. 😀 Thank you!
We had that storm too, but without the power loss. But what luck to see such a rainbow! (K)
Thank you, Kerfe. We had a few rounds of thunderstorms, did you? My husband saw the rainbow in the morning, then we got the first round of severe thunderstorms. Later while we were finishing dinner, we got a tornado warning and had to go down to the basement. We may get more of the same today.
Yes, we’ve had weather changing by the hour. They are saying severe storms tonight. Luckily the wind doesn’t seem to come from the east that often, which is the direction my windows face. No tornados yet.
I hope your storms are not too severe.
I’ll find out!
I love how spring rains wash the air clean and the pollen down the drain! Very nice double rainbow.
Thank you very much, Dwight!
We got a tornado warning later. 😔
I guess it is that time of year again!
Yes, I guess so! It seemed more like August weather though. 😏
This was wonderful! I had a feeling it was for the dVerse (still contemplating doing it 😉
Thank you very much, Dale!
Go for it. 🙂 This prompt is still open till this afternoon (Thursday).
Oh. Well, even if I don’t link it, I might still be inspired… 😉
Yes, I’ve been thinking of going back to prompts I missed just as inspiration.
That way I don’t feel obliged to real them all… Man this blogging is a time suck.
I know. That’s why I don’t do some prompts. I can’t read them all. I’m on for a prosery prompt soon, so I’ll have to read all of them. 😀
I feel compelled to read them all so I have to hold myself back. I’d spend all day on the computer (I already spend way too much time here as it is…)
Well…. YOURS I just might have to do 😉
I feel like I haven’t done anything all day trying to read posts. My dVerse prompt isn’t until next week. Monday? Maybe I better check. I haven’t written it yet. 😀
I know! And, not to be bitchy, but I am so done with posts that go on and on about the pandemic. A mention is fine (not really, but yanno, I have to have some compassion) but the on-going whine just kills me. I have taken days off from reading just to give myself a break. Course, I come back coz there are those (like you) I don’t want to miss!
Yes, I get it. It’s sort of hard to ignore the pandemic, but at the same time, you don’t want to read about it on and on and on. It’s funny doing my test writing where things like illness, much less pandemics do not exist. 😏 And thank you. Yes, I read yours and certain other people all the time–the people who respond to my posts.
It is quasi-impossible. And hey, we’ve all written something in the last three months. It’s the ones who go on an on from post to post. To each his/her own; however, I won’t be reading them.
Yes, we have our peeps and there are some I follow who don’t follow me and that is quite fine as not everyone who follows me will be followed by me 😉
Some great word choices here – plothering rain, thick sticky air – and I love the abrupt cut off when the power goes out. And a double rainbow. Lucky us!
Thank you, Sarah. The rainbow was actually in the morning–there must have been rain there earlier, though not here. Then we had the first round of storms here with the power outage. Then after I posted this, we had more thunderstorms AND a tornado warning, so we sat in the basement for a while.
Delightful description
Thank you very much, Derrick.
Beautifully done, creative too
Thank you so much, Jude!
My pleasure Merrill
The poem follows the rainbow’s arc, rising to a pitch then sliding down to peace again. (I spoke too soon—the storm’s just hit).
Thank you! 😀
NJ early summer weather is so similar to New England’s: hot then cold sunny then stormy humid then dry air. And it all settles down on our moods and our wonderings in this volatile world. May we always hope for the rainbow at the beginning AND the end. The world needs that hope.
Your rainbow photo from the Pitman Golf Course brought back memories, where I waitressed at their (then small ) snack bar/restaurant during my college summers. I even learned to make French Toast there. 🙂
Yes, lots of rainbows without the severe storms would be nice. 😀 My daughter and daughter-in-law are finding the weather much nicer in western Mass than in Boston. I knew you lived in Pitman, but I didn’t know (or remember) that you waitressed there, too. My husband just got rehired to work on the grounds (a retirement job), and our younger daughter had her wedding there. They did a beautiful job.
Ohh, love knowing that (about you and your family and Pitman connections). I agree – western MA is gorgeous. When it’s winter, it’s really WINTER, and then glorious in the summertime.
Younger daughter got married on Independence Day a few years back.
Older daughter and her wife really like where they are–close to both nature and lots of cool cultural things, too.
I love a good thunderstorm… but not the power outages
Yes, watching lightning off in the distance is good. 😏
What a journey you took us on …. cheers!
Thank you so much!
OMG!
This is perfect. the power went out here, and I was back to sewing… stitch.. at … a …time.
The power came on, and this was here.
Reversed… maybe, but in the end versed, profoundly!
Wow–that is timing! Thank you so much! I hope you got your stitching done.
(Can you imagine having to stitch by candlelight on a regular basis? )
Where we live there are so rarely such intense rainstorms… more persistent drizzle day and night…
It used to be more of a late summer thing here–these types of severe thunderstorms–though there are nor’easters that come at other times.
I enjoy most rain. One year though while out of town we saw the rain clouds over the ocean and didn’t quite make it to safety in time and were soaked to the bone. Thankfully it was summer 😉
(Thanks for the note about ‘BB’ I wasn’t aware of it -as I attempt to ignore ‘The Great and Doubt-able Twit’ – Again this will be a challenge of the lesser of two evils – I just hope we don’t get a second term of the same germ. – In regards to ‘both’ viruses… )
I ignore him, too, but Randy Rainbow’s most recent video is Bunker Boy. 😀. If dt is reelected, our country is doomed.