First, we hear on the horizon a low storm forming
– thunder rumble, roll and groan.
Lightning flashes inside fat storm clouds
– kssss, psssh, pppfffkkk, crack, sprack!
The wind starts whistling through the windows
– moaning oooooh oooooh OOOOOOH.
A wall of rain comes drumming, humming
– beating, tapping, pounding, lashing.
Tornado siren screams its warning
– wailing its deep screech of fear.
The twister yeets and hurls sharp objects
– hurtling, piercing, stabbing, wounding.
Missiles fire in all directions
– shooting, shelling, crashing, dashing.
Its funnel vacuums up the buildings
– whooshing, swooshing, sucking.
Playing with power lines like guitar strings
– twanging, plucking, snapping.
The noise is deafening
– thrashing, battering, skreeeeeeking.
Like fingernails on blackboards scratching
– like scraping sounds of forks on plates.
And just as suddenly, it vanishes
– debris is settling in the brush.
An eeriness descends, is it over?
– am I safe to go outside?
Huddled in the shelter listening
to the breathing and the pounding of our hearts.
The creak of the door as the shelter opens
– we witness silence, stillness, dread.