September Front
The first cold front (like Christmas comes)
Arrives with greatest flair,
Anticipated (roll of drums!)
For seasons of the air.
All Texas sat, on Santa’s knee,
Throughout the month before,
And with a single earnest plea,
Did o’er and o’er implore
For just one gift from old Saint Nick,
One gift, and that is all;
As soon as possible, a quick
Sign of impending fall.
It was the fourth our present came,
Delivered by the wind,
That stiffly blew with stubborn aim,
From north, to bring an end
To marching hundreds on the scale,
An army straight from hell,
That licked and left an empty pail
Of Texas lake and well.
We wake to mornings crisp and cool
With smiles like Cheshire cat,
More gladly keep the Golden Rule,
More jaunty tilt the hat.
We celebrate, exult, and still
Our disappointment hide –
The colors of our gift-wrapped chill
Were missing, far and wide.
The radar blank, a baby’s slate,
No green or yellow hue;
No line of rain across the state
As front came marching through.
And so we live, in drought – no rain.
But break in summer heat,
Takes some of pain. Some aches remain –
Our lives are bittersweet.
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The above is true about the front that swept the state
on Sept.4. It brought no rain. But since then, I’ve had
a rain a week (1/2 in., 1/2 in., .8 in., 1 in.). During two
of those rains, including the one Saturday night (10/8/11),
widespread areas of Texas also received rains, some far
heavier than we’ve had here. Since we’re 15 inches
behind in rain and I see no difference in the creek below
my perch, we certainly can’t say the drought is over.
The rains we’ve received, however, have blessed us and
we’re grateful, not to Saint Nick, but to God.
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© Dennis Lange and thebardonthehill.wordpress.com, 2011.
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