Summer Rain

                    Summer Rain                July 17 2007


Rain.
Steady, feathery, warm summer rain.
It’s midmorning and chores are done
The rain is a great moving gentle waterfall sea

Rest
It says, in one long flowing never-ending voice

The birds fly in it against a sky of down
One here, one there, as if dreaming
Lulling rain
Reminding me that water is a blessing
Whether sea or stream or rain or tears

My reservoir is brimming
It’s dikes and dams hold strong
But the water rises drop by drop
Cresting the spillway
And the blessing silvers out
As if waking
Deep breath

The water the rain waterfall gentle sea washing
Rinsing us of our shedding dust
Sorting us out from the film of the unformed
And all that which is not us
Differentiating us from the fine powdery dust of what we came from
Ages past
(And where we will rest our bones, very soon)
We rise up like green blades of grass and the dirt settles down in lower places

Summer baptism
And all that goes down is rinsed away
And all that goes up becomes clean
Warm steam breath
Summer rain