The sky was blue and seas were calm.
I didn’t think we’d come to harm
But through the night strong winds increased
And trees shared moans with those deceased -
Good men who trod these shores before
And knew that danger lay in store.
I gathered up some food and light
And found some shelter for the night.
With children huddled by my chest
I disregarded all the rest -
Our furniture and all we own -
Possessions left! My mobile phone
Was close in case we needed help.
A dog then gave a startled yelp
As boughs of trees crashed through our roof.
The cyclone came with savage proof!
We cringed as metal flew above
And tightly clung to those we love.
Then winds became a thund’rous roar
And rattling came from every door.
We felt the whole place shift and shake.
Our house was just about to break
When all turned calm. We had survived!
The cyclone’s eye had now arrived.
We waited for the wind to change
Direction - feeling very strange.
An eerie stillness filled the air -
Except for wails of deep despair
From neighbours who had lost their home -
And left their precious dog to roam.
Soon rumbling noises came once more.
We wondered what could be in store
As winds again began to howl
And creeping water, black and foul,
Swept round our feet with swirling mud.
The ceiling fell - a crashing thud! |
The rain, a horizontal force,
Was grey and dark. We saw a horse
Fly past our door with startled ease.
We prayed above and begged, “God, please
Now save us from this awful blast!”
This stinging deluge couldn’t last.
But rain and strong winds still ensued
And flooded roads were then pursued
By rubbish, logs and sharp debris.
It wasn’t finished yet, you see.
Electric lights had all gone out
And then we heard a lively shout.
“Do you need help in there?”, he cried.
We grabbed his outstretched hand and sighed
Then scrambled over bricks and steel
Not noticing a bleeding heel,
A forehead cut, a broken arm.
We were alive, so no real harm.
Our house was just a shattered mess.
We found a chair ... some toys ... one dress.
The rest was gone! We looked in shock
When seeing houses on our block,
Now flattened matchsticks, smeared with blood -
Results of that horrendous flood.
Then tears welled up. I felt bereft,
For not one photograph was left.
We missed the sentimental things -
The loving gifts, the precious rings -
Those pieces of our lives now lost
To memory, that was the cost. |
