Jeff McCallum

Diagnosis

Though thunder rolls through pregnant skies

let forecast serve as guide, not eyes;

for rain drops may or may not fall,

the clouds may cease to grey at all.

Emerging sun holds storms at bay

as song birds sing to crown the day.

Perhaps the rain will fall and pass

as gentle as sweet dew on grass;

refreshing fields, renewing life;

re-birth with rain as hope’s midwife.

The skies will open, clouds all clear

as rain and sun coax life appear.

And if the worst should come to be

as violent storm uprooting tree,

for each that falls, who won’t survive,

new seeds will sprout, fresh roots will thrive.

All those who meld with universe

don’t take their last step, but their first.

The Weather Map

A forecast is not prophesy

only an educated guess

based

one would hope

on data

experience

vaults filled with scrolls and computer print-outs

years of field tests

modeling

statistics and probability

Yet the wind shifts with the tides

the tide with the moon

the moon with the seasons

A prognosis

on the other hand

while much more scientific

may require you to co-operate

Your whole hearted

fatalistic acceptance

and sometimes

your continued unhealthy lifestyle

to become an actuality

Doubt that wind shifts with the tides

the tide with moon

the moon with the season