Old John and the Rain

I woke last night

And heard the rain

And as I lay there

Listening to the opera

That was the rain

And that the silence filled

A sense of gratitude

In my heart did grow

 

My bones still ached

And my hands so crooked

Stayed clawed and bent

Their toils outside

Were reaping a dividend

Plenty-fold and tonight

As I listen to that welcomed trespasser

I see my reward that awaits come dawn.

 

Sleep came again she did

Upon my weary limbs

My eyes, my mind, my heart

All heavy, so full and overflowing

Of all that life has been

And so dreams did come

And take me back to these blessed moments past

And I was young again

Till I woke at dawn to the sound of rain.

Elizabeth Cummings

• Submitted in response to Poetry Prompt #15