Wait
Wait.
Doldrums of summer until the right
moisture
temperature
pressure.
Then spin slowly,
a dancing dandelion puff in the breeze.
Then twist tightly,
a leaf leaping from the branch at the wane of fall.
Then whirl wildly,
an eddy over rocks refusing the tide.
Then surge, flurry, gyrate, envelope, encompass.
Circle violently,
like the ride at a two-bit fair, casting children in exhilarating motion.
Creep down,
an elephant trunk hanging in the putrid sky
which heaves aside tons of rubble, a tantrum fit unmatched.
Then panic.
Alarms.
Sirens.
Terror.
Whimpers.
Prayers.
Then
then
then abandon homes,
abandon hospitals,
abandon schools, cars, trucks.
Abandon fear.
Ebb again, silent
retreat into cerulean peace.
Wait.
Wait.
Wait.
June 6th, 2013 at 3:08 pm
Tornadoes are scary. You set up the tension in waiting for them to end. Nice rhythm.
June 6th, 2013 at 6:13 pm
When you first read this in class I have to admit I didn’t really understand all of it. But reading it just now and being able to see it, I really love it. I love how it is even in the shape of a tornado.
June 6th, 2013 at 6:41 pm
I have never experienced a tornado (thankfully!), but this piece brings that fear alive. There is that sense of sitting and waiting for disaster to strike. Very well done!
June 6th, 2013 at 9:57 pm
Robanne I am very impressed with you writing and would encourage you to finish your book and share that talent with others. Your piece is so vivid and creates a sense of being there as the winds begin to swirl and then the sudden lull before the train roars into town. My fathers family lives in Mulhall and Crescent City. The devastation of Mulhall will always be in my mind and related a perfect description of what may have taken place. I was amazed as the church and the school was the primary focus after the families were housed. The sense of urgency you create after “Then panic…” is felt by the reader. Thanks for sharing.
June 6th, 2013 at 11:25 pm
Robanne,
I love this piece and would like permission to use it as a mentor text if you wouldn’t mind. It’s interesting that you never mention the word tornado, but the words you use in the way you use them leave the reader certain of your topic.
June 7th, 2013 at 11:59 am
This is an intense and powerfully moving poem. This moved me to tears the first time I heard it. The air was sucked out of the room, and your poem still has this effect upon reading it a second, third, fourth time.
This stanza:
Then panic.
Alarms.
Sirens.
Terror.
Whimpers.
Prayers.
Moves from loud and violent to humble and quiet. I this there is a lot of truth here about how a tornado would be experienced.
Thank you so much. You are a talented writer.
-Mindi