Unapologetic

July thunder rumbles in the west 
     grumbling 
          and growling like hunger  

but not the kind a human body knows
 
no, this sound is 
     older 
          darker 
  deeper and more feral

a sudden crash splits the air

and then the wind
                 comes swirling
     unapologetic
                fearless
                   reckless 

a crackling flash of light 
          freeze frames
                    cedars, birch and maples 
             thrashing 
                       in wild commotion 

branches bend to rain 
   that batters 
                   intense and 
         unrelenting

so fierce 
         earth cannot 
   open to receive it

* * * 
postscript: 
I don’t know how 
to save this changing world 
(and clearly, 
I have no idea 
how to save myself) 
but in this moment, 
my faith in its endurance 
is all that seems to matter.