Monday, June 1, 2009

Sometimes it rains



Sometimes It Rains

The ready perfumes of summer's middle days,
Creosote, creosote after rain, rain

Bringing up the last of the orange-blossom smell,
The droplets of water rousing the fallen leaves

Enough to make a moment come back to life in them,
A second once more of something, a moment from when

They were white and waxy and alive with themselves.
But night comes, too, to gather this moment,

Even as we want it to stay, even as we will not go inside.
The creosote, the orange blossoms, the hot honeysuckle

Flowers in the desert moonlight, the shadows of yucca,
Those sharp fronds, they make a full burst of daggers

Black on the gray-colored ground of the early evening.
The ocher and pink colors of this place in daytime

Are parts of one color at night, so that to see them
One has to breathe in. And breathing in:

This has the curious effect of rain itself in that moment—
The smell rousing us to what we know inside ourselves.

But that is not the end of it, a rainy day turning itself
Into a moist evening full of crickets.

This place is no different from any other, and rain is rain
Here as much as anywhere. But something happens

In the desert after rain has come. We sleep a good sleep
That night. In the morning, we get up and find ourselves

Standing on the shore of the new world. In the desert,
We watch, if we're careful, and when we point at everything

We are complicit in the great magician's trick of the rain:
Rain falls down wet and gets up green.

--Alberto RĂ­os


26 comments:

Anonymous said...

Great poem Reya! ...and the colours in the last photo are superb.

Natalie said...

I love the colour and the movement in that photo.Wonderful.xx♥

Reya Mellicker said...

Thanks! The yarrow and lavender are blooming. It's summer!

IntangibleArts said...

Having spent nearly a decade in southern Arizona, I'll vouch for the mental zoomies that the creosote + orange-blossom scent inspires, esp.before a pre-monsoon bit of atmospheric awesomeness.

Tess Kincaid said...

Rain falls down wet and gets up green. I love that.

Val said...

and after the rain, sky lays in pieces on the ground...

The Bug said...

Oh, nice! I love lavender - wonder if I can grow it at our new house. Hmm - I'm in zone 5B now - better look it up! I say that like I'm a gardener, when in fact I have never gardened & have to have a reminder on my calendar to water the houseplants!

Meri said...

That poem puts me in sensory overload. It's amazing. Like Willow, I love the last two lines and Val's observation is so true.

karen said...

Lavender and yarrow... dreamy looking photo, I love it! x

Unknown said...

That is one fantastic poem-- thanks for posting it.

Joanne said...

The last line says it all beautifully. Here in CT we've had more cloudy and rainy days than sunny. Guess a lot of green is about to spring!

Nancy said...

Growing up in the desert, there is nothing better than a rain storm.

mum said...

oh man. I get high on some poems like other people do on... all kinds of other stuff. I'm lifting this one right this minute. To me, the creosote evokes Texas, and the orange blossoms, Israel and... oh never mind, just thanks for this poem.

have a great day, Reya.

Rosaria Williams said...

Oh,what an appropriate poem. Love that last line.

Joanna said...

Such sensuous word images. Thank you for this poem, and the two photo images.

Merle Sneed said...

Creosote and orange blossom, very familiar smells to me.

Reya Mellicker said...

I love this poem. I agree with you, Meri - it's a trip! Takes me through time so fast my stomach lurches, and to a completely different landscape than the one in which I live.

I love it, though.

And yes, Merle I definitely thought about you when I decided to post it today.

Butternut Squash said...

Beautiful poetry. I love urban wild flowers. I especially like the ones that spontaneously generate from between the cracks in the sidewalk. They are stuck so fast that you can't pull them out by the roots. It's like they are saying, "Heck no, I won't go, I was here first." Peace.

Chimera said...

Amcatching up on all things Golden! Love Prince Charming! Oh and as usual your photos give me such happiness! Have you any idea how talented your are Reya? An exceptional eye - inside and out!
T xx

Tom said...

fantastic last line...hope i can remember it!
we got loads of rain, too...delicious warm/wet droplets...soaked right into the dirt, and put to good use, no doubt.
My sock puppet says 'hi' to yours...he's in a good mood.

steven said...

reya, what a colourful sensory sweet journey! thanks.
steven

ellen abbott said...

I love rain in the desert, the smell of the creosote bush. Reminds me of my river guide days. did a trip one spring when it had been wet. Never seen the desert in so much bloom, color everywhere.

Ronda Laveen said...

Lovely wistful poem. I am not familiar with creosote. Our lavenar has bloomed but too early for that Achillea. The purples and yellows are so great together.

Mary Ellen said...

I can almost smell that desert air after the rain - that was my childhood experience (southwest idaho) while now I'm in a much damper midwestern clime. Thanks!

Mrsupole said...

The poem was really wonderful. I liked all the words that were used in it.

The second picture has such beautiful contrast and colors. Thank you again for always sharing those photos with us.

God bless.

Anonymous said...

Thank you for bringing that poem back into my mind. So beautiful in its simplicity.