Rain
It rained. It rained and rained. It rained so hard the windows cried. It rained so hard the roof thundered. It rained for so many days the girl no long believed in the sun, no longer believed in the light. The rain came down so hard, it knocked leaves off of trees. It splattered dirt out of flowerbeds. It even took blooms off of branches, leaving red and yellow memories on the slick pavement.
And so she went out into it. All around her people scurried for doorways and bus stops. Some held umbrellas turned inside out in the wind. Some held newspapers over their heads. But she did none of these things. Instead, she stood perfectly still. She waited while the water soaked her clothes, her hair, her skin. She felt the weight of all that water, as if she might become rooted there on that city street.
At some point, the water got through her skin to her bones. And that was something! Her bones loosened their grip, leaving her breathless, unsure of her mooring. Imagine a skeleton unhinged. And imagine what came next. Her heart, without a cage, set sail. No chart. Unfamiliar waters. All that rain on the horizon. Clouds bursting. Lightning ready.
Commenting is closed for this article.