By Katherine Baker
The road glosses over as if of glass,
which shivers when the raindrops pass,
making red and green dance
from traffic lights in stance,
hypnotic, on the river-road ahead.
Through the world, a gentle gray has bled.
The world is slivered through the car windows;
tiny streaks form as the passing wind blows.
They run back to the wind as the car speeds on,
not caring how far they will be flung.
Within minutes the world has changed
from heat-bleached roads and wilting terrain
to raging black rivers and swamp-like moors,
all while the rain reshapes the picture more
with thousands of tiny bubbles—grand,
masterful strokes on every surface land.
The world is rippled, and now I know
the rain turns my eyes into ponds also.
I slow down to see the commotion,
and the raindrops dance in slow motion,
falling by the billions from the sky,
not knowing where they go or why,
but washing the world in soft gray anyway.
Stopping now, I can’t resist the urge.
The car is opened, and here comes the surge.
The rain now kisses me on and on.
Soft thuds of rain pummel me as I dart along
to the next dryish concrete island,
laughing as loud as I can.
The wind joins in the jest,
pelting my glasses until blessed
with a waving mosaic of raindrops.
I’m half blind but won’t stop.
The joy I feel is as clear
as the dancing raindrops here.
I hear a grumble from a passerby.
The thunder imitates his voice (or tries).
“Another dreary day!” he mourns
while I still beg for more.
If one will take the time to look,
gray skies are simply joy mistook.
For rain comes to bless the trees,
and then the trees in turn bless me.
Dark clouds are just joy another way,
and overall we all need another “dreary day.”
So, I will try to see
the beauty in front of me.
The thunder laughs, not roars;
the rivers quench, not asking for more.
Each drop does not distort my sight,
but magnifies details put in life
that God wants us to see another way.
He gives raindrop eyes on special days
where the gray-washed landscape stews,
and then is made anew.
A place where roads gloss over like glass,
and green and red lights twist and dance
on black river-roads passed by
through my raindrop eyes.
Katherine Baker loves to express the many thoughts and emotions she feels each day in the form of art. From music to poetry to stories to (depressingly amateur) drawing, she is always bubbling with an overflow of God-given imagination that she desires to share with everyone she meets. An overambitious free-spirit, she is always juggling her big ideas and her busy life. She will profess that every good thing she creates is not her own, but only possible through the finished work of her Savior, Jesus Christ.
This is breathtaking! So beautiful! 🙂
Thank you! 🙂
Oh, I love this.
Thank you very much!
This is definitely one of my favorite poems posted to SE thus far. Thank you so much for sharing it with us Katherine!
Aww, that’s so sweet! Thank you very much.
this is SO great, Katherine! Do you live in CA, because I do and am totally with ya every step of the way there. It has rained this week for the first time in like 16 months, and I am LOVING it. (=
Thank you!
No, I actually live in the south, where we have been getting several good rains in the past few months. I’ve always enjoyed rainy days, and such day inspiration for a poem struck.
First time in 16 months? Wow! I can see where rain would be a sight for sore eyes I can’t imagine the grumbler there. 🙂
yah, that’s just about everybody. We’re all like “we need the rain! Wouldn’t rain be nice?” but then when it comes people drive like first graders on a bumper cars rink. Its crazy.
Well done. I enjoyed your poem a lot. Rain is such a blessing especially when it’s dry and your garden doesn’t want to grow. No moisture=no food=very very bad! 🙂 Thank God for rain!
Yes, thank God for rain!
Ooh, I think this is one of the most beautiful poems on SE! I love it! And I like rainy days too.
Thank you very much! Rainy days are my favorites. 🙂
I’ve read this through so many times now that I can’t count. I just wanted to let you know that God used this to touch me in a wonderful way that I needed the first time I read it – and ever since. <3 "Raindrop Eyes"…what a lovely, simple, accurate way to describe something so amazing and beautiful!
Aww! That really warmed my heart. Thank you for the encouragement, friend. 🙂
*happy, content sigh* Thank you for writing about the rain. <3 I love this so wonderfully much.
Thank you! Content is the perfect word. There’s something so perfect about rainy days. You are welcome.