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Sunday, April 8, 2012

"In the heat of late afternoon...," by Gary Young



In the heat of late afternoon, lightning streaks from a nearly
cloudless sky to the top of the far mesa. At dusk, the whole south
end of the valley blazes as the clouds turn incandescent with
some distant strike. There is a constant congress here between
the earth and the sky. This afternoon a thunderstorm crossed the
valley. One moment the ground was dry, and the next there were
torrents running down the hillsides and arroyos. A quarter-mile
off
I could see a downpour bouncing off the sage and the fine clay
soil. I could see the rain approach, and then it hit, drenching me,
and moved on. Ten minutes later I was dry. The rain comes from
heaven, and we are cleansed by it. Suddenly the meaning of
baptism
is clear to me: you can begin again, and we are saved every day.

"In the heat of late afternoon..." by Gary Young, from Even So: New & Selected Poems
White Pine Press, 2012. 

EASTER GREETINGS.

6 comments:

  1. I enjoyed that little piece. The photo is just amazing , the sheer power of mother nature at it's finest.

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    1. Great photo. Want to make clear it's not mine--public domain. But wish I'd taken it.

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  2. Greetings-Amazing photo. I liked the descriptive parts of the land and the storm. It seemed the power brought on the thought. I particularly liked, "The rain comes from heaven and we are cleansed by it"

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    1. I like how he caught one of those spiritual moments that come directly from an experience of nature. And I love thunderstorms. I've missed them.

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