The Flooding Rains of Oz

like the fury from hell
the wrath of king tide overwhelms
the land with fear
and flooding rains; plucking the baby
from her mother’s arms

the brittle
fragments of life vanished
like faded dreams…

the palatial homes
and gardens disappear without trace
ravaged by
the dead Hand of Nature, the flooding
rains of Oz foretold

i fight like
the rainbow warrior of time
pacifying the gods

sleep deserts me
as bodies float like rag dolls along
the main street
haunted by the angry waters
of the inland sea

i live on air and
prayer like a poet possessed
dreaming of a new dawn

innocent flood victims
cry for help; unleashing the mighty torrents
of kindness across the vale;
breaking the long silence of the
nation in mourning

then, the sun smiles…
and the land gives up its secrets,
the hidden treasures of wonder revealed

after the deluge
new love flowers in my veins, like
a garden in full bloom
the gentle wind dances with the summer's heat;
transforming my soul

© Lawrence T. Udo-Ekpo