We’re still delighted with the rain,
summer thunder heralding its coming,
gutters singing with the water’s running,
sun’s warmth still hovering
between the drifts of slightly cooling breezes

Five minutes and it’s gone –
subtle rumbles still retreating,
the highway sounding louder from its wetting,
and the end-of-summer smells –
dried grass, and mammal,
mix with the newer scent of dampened soil,
unpredictability now predictable
here at the cusp of autumn.

©Wendy Mulhern
September 2, 2023