Summer Rain

 A leaden sky
 dark grey marauds
 against
the brightness of the morning. 
A stillness;
time suspended;
all nature  waits.

Slow to fall 
the sound awakens,
perceptions heightened.
Olfactory senses  stirred by 
 primeval  smells 
of spores released.
A reawakening -
nature's release.
Rejuvenation or decay, 
water replenishes.

Droplets quicken- 
a move to a different
  tempo.
Sounds intensify against hard earth.
Nature responds:
Birds quieten, 
Plants stand tall,
Colours intensify
 against the grey.  

 With gentleness it falls ,
The weathervane redundant;
Windless 
Slow moving 
Thirst quenching
Life-giving.

Into pools and rivulets, 
streams in the lane,
each droplet  finding its course,
Repurposed,
Focused.

For each living thing
hydration.
Repurposed, 
Focused,
Changed.  

Ruth Partridge