The letterbox clatters, a gong sounding in the early morning hush. Now broken.

Rain falls, pulsating in waves, dancing along the street to its own mixed tempo rhythm.

Fences rattle and sway, daring the wind to try harder.

Tree limbs thrash and snap, an angry whip cracking, tapping and tickling windows, bending one way then another, under the influence of this swirling mass of Mother Nature's energy.

The air carries a song; its timbre is quiet one moment, building to an apocalyptic crescendo the next.

Verses come and go, and in the silence between, we wait...