The Gift of the Sky

A glorious rainbow illuminates the sky above our farm after a lifesaving rainfall several years ago.

The Gift of the Sky

The thirsty fields cry aloud for the falling drops 

Calling them from the cloudless sky

The hot wind swirls the dust as the fields lie baking

The cattle shift restlessly, picking at the dry hay

Longing to taste the savor of fresh green grass

The crops are just beginning to wilt, 

The dark green of burgeoning growth

Slowly replacing the yellow of premature ripeness 

The dreams of the harvest bounty 

Fading into the reality of disappointment

After four dry years, the farm family hoped

That this year would be different

That the sky would bless the land as it used to 

Without prayers and entreaties, petitions and outright begging

Without trucking in a meager pittance of water

Moving hoses and patching leaks

That the rain would just fall at the right time

And the well tended Earth would give forth her fruit

As in some mythical season when the world was new

Then, two weeks of hard work since the last rain

Mowing, hoeing, weeding, tilling, 

Stirring the dry soil

With tools and and machines

Keeping the earth moist deep below

Covered with a coating of dust, the old way

Sowing seeds into the hot soil with a blessing

Tender shoots pressed into the hilled ground

Treating the little plants with care 

Making the best of things

Preparing the land for the rain

Then that night we sat outside under the Moon 

And called out yet again

To the pitiless powers of what sometimes seems

An indifferent providence

That they give an ear to the farmer’s prayer

And show themselves to be kindly

The rising smoke carrying our prayers to the heavens

The realm of winds and clouds

Where the powers that send the rain have their dwelling

Our chants and calls were heard 

And our petitions found favor with the rustic gods:

Rain clouds filled the evening sky

And by dawn the rain began to fall

The cool, sweet odor of petrichor filling the morning air 

All day we sat inside as it came down in sheets over the countryside

Obscuring our view of the valley below our home

The frogs croaked out the prayers of gratitude to their amphibian gods

As we sang our praise to ours

The crops drank deep of the damp earth, leaves and veins filling with life

As the sap rose up from their roots, slaking their thirst

We watched contented as the falling sheets drenched the land

No longer thirsty as the rain quickly turned the clay dirt from dust to mud  

And so it is, I fulfill my vow

I offer to the creator praise and thanks

As well as all of the mighty powers she uses 

To bring the gift of rain to the land 

To the angels of the elements, the wind genii

The storm gods and wind spirits

The animate powers, Bringers of the weather

You brought us rain, gently falling

Without strong winds or hail, deluge, flood or violence

Not in extravagance and excess, but proper balance

You showed your kindest face and we are grateful

It is my joy to call out to you with longing

To send a voice in chant to Sky and Earth

To pound a drum, reciting sacred names 

Into the rising smoke which carries my voice to you

All the better when the prayers are answered 

And when a farmer’s dream comes true

When a soft rain falls from heaven