Rain Prayer

6/12/08

I petitioned you for a deluge, did not pray

For the briefest shower or some paltry drops

To ease the deep-cracked soil, as balm my hands.

Parched is the ground and all growing stops,

The grass dies out although the clover blooms,

And brightens undisturbed and bees still find

A sip of nectar in the drooping flowers,

The heat so strong it even wilts the mind.

So come, rain, fill the empty lakes

And I with feet of clay will dance and sing

And praise you for your generosity.

Return the thirsty land to flowering,

Be generous and bountiful O rain

The suffering earth make beautiful again.