Fair Weather

If there is something I have learned
it is that lightning strikes
in the same bitter place
twice.

The smoke of that fire
welcomes me again,
making me feel sure of myself;
like nothing ever happened.

The sun shining
on a cloudless day
could never turn dark
or the grey green
of twisters;
nothing like that
ever happened.

But I fall
on my knees
and pray
to remember
myself
even when the forecast
predicts fair weather.

I remember
that blue skies
are exactly what  I must
watch the horizon for
and prepare for any signs
of storms  I will make for myself.

The sweetness of rain
is a smell I know--
electric and charged
with the source
of God's laughter.