The Big Rains By Mabel Burton Suddenly, Eucalyptus trees Around me Flashing, dipping, dancing, Thrashing me; A cacophony of sound Envelops me; The winds come screaming Frightening me, The rushing, roaring rains in torrents Beating me. Scimitars of light rend dark skies Blinding me; Thunderous, ear-splitting blasts join the Symphony. Nerves stretched taut, my soul cries out In agony. Then, as suddenly It seems an angel of light appears Accusingly, And, at the sight, all sound flees and instead Of fury, A gentle quiet reigns, light floods the sodden earth Shiningly, And all is peace again. Ethiopia Observer, vol.13 (1970), n.1, p.36 Mabel Burton, a British teacher, taught shorthand at The Addis Ababa Commercial School in the early 1960s.