Five minutes

I love the sound of rain.
I went outside and just watched the rainfall.
I was soaked, but I was also caught in the moment of things.
When it rains, in the summer, all the trees, the ground and bushes are all clean.
Clean from anything that has happened.
The smell of rain is wonderful, especially when it's nice and cool outside.
But you must love those oh-so-rare summer rains,
When its almost hot outside, and it rains for five minutes.
After it stops raining you feel the ground and how cool it is to your touch.
Look up on the horizon and see fog coming up towards you.
You run towards it like you would if you were five years old.
Now standing on top of a hill surrounded by this fog you begin to hear things.
You hear distant cheers of friends playing down towards the house.
They call for you - but no, you like it just where you are.
No trees on this hill, just short cut grass, bits of it dead.
You can see a full 360 degrees and how just beyond the hill how many trees there are.
The sun is right on you, but not that far away from you your friends are in the shade.
Tall pines and bushes engulf them in shade and everything lying near them.
You spot a dirt path not too far from the house
Take a walk down this old path, and see what it has to offer.
Blueberries - just right for the picking
Taste one and have your mouth trip for a moment over how juicy and delicious they are.
Take some for your trip back to the house.
Enter in and get comfortable, listen to your grandma talk to your parents,
Look around at the house and just wonder at all these walls have seen and heard.
When you see the sun beginning to set, you get set to go outside.
Perfect weather, and your even dry now to enjoy it!
Go outside and leave the wonderful at home aroma of your grandma's house.
Looking around you can tell the day is soon to end.
Flowers are closing up and everything is even quieter than before.
A drop of water sticks out to you as you observe things around you.
The drop was a crystal - and yet for a moment it was suspended in time.
The coolness of the night air was near
And still you could see some effects of the five-minute rain.
Walk uphill until you can see the house, and the now small hill.
Civilization, every hour or so a car would pass by,
The road was a nice shaded road, curved enough to give it some character.
Trees were everywhere, to give you a thought about how many trees there were
Just take a pencil and stick it through your hair, your pencil of course would be the road.
And the hair would resemble all the trees this road was curved going uphill
Of course you were near the top.
Silence is in everything, the trees and even the road.
Walk around near the road; you see a puddle of water from a hole in the road.
You know what that means!
Walk over to it and kick it, watching it trickle down the hill.
Almost time to go in but, but why? Can't we just stay here?
It was almost dark out, and still just as wonderful.
You see a light turn on in the house, thinking to yourself
How nice it would be to have some company right now
So you walk, jog and then not by choice run down the hill.
But you notice how fun it is and just go along with it.
Time to go inside, so say goodbye.
Fireflies flicker as the night sets in.

Poem by J.A.D. © 2001