Tornado for Two

by Mathew Richard Carter

We lay
shrouded underneath the kitchen table,
darkened by the power failure, only
illuminated during
dramatic sheets
of lightning,
blanketing
our anxious faces
as a flat crack
of thunder
follows.
We lay
cowered under the scent of our own fear, only
one more hour, we thought it would never end.
Suddenly, down came
the rain like the sound
of trains growing
louder, closer
as a monster’s
hand sweeps
the land.
We lay
frozen under panes of pressure. Our immobile
bodies sliding in and out of consciousness,
the sheer horror of
finding ourselves
less fortunate
the next day
was very near.
Silence became
our long, lost
friend.
We lay
pensive under sturdy roofs, the broken century
void insurance claim no longer applies. Our
dumbfounded thoughts
race to the hope of
this storm’s
conclusion,
counting
seconds
between
final claps
of thunder.