Remember?

Remember all the moaning when it was hot and dry?

When all the birds were singing, not a cloud up in the sky?

Remember how we suffered with sweaty boobs and brows

And the farmers had a meltdown with no grass left for their cows?

Remember how we wilted under the baking summer’s sun

And the seaside towns were bursting with children having fun?

The ground was dry and cracking, the rivers had stopped flowing

The crops were looking stunted and many had stopped growing.

And just a few weeks later we are stuck in a deep flood.

We can’t get through the gateways, the dust has turned to mud.

The winds are blowing wildly and the leaves have blocked the drains

And every time we go out it just rains and rains and rains.

And soon will come the warning and the north winds start to blow

And everyone will panic because they think that it might snow.

You can’t buy your normal shopping, the shelves are all stripped bare

No milk, no cheese no carrots, it’s enough to make you swear.

Then they tell you on the tele’ that the snow will be so deep

That you’ll need to take a shovel so that you can find your sheep.

We watch for the stinging blizzard and wrap up against the storm

And make sure all our livestock are safe and fed and warm.

The sheds are full of firewood, the fire is burning bright

We’re ready for this weather on the long cold winter’s night.

then we wake up one bright morning and see a sign of spring,

Just a tiny shoot uncurling bringing life to everything.

life goes round in a circle, and the swallows will come back

And the mud dries in the gateways, there’ll be daisies on the track

And we will see the promise that the spring is on it’s way

And we’ll grease up the old baler for when we cut the hay.

So batten down the hatches because this rain will also pass

And the cows will be back grazing on fields of lush green grass.

Because life is like the weather we must ride out all the storms,

and store the sunny memories in our hearts to keep us warm.

Jan Millward©