The Wind

Accompanied by swirling leaves I struggled back home against the wind with two bags of shopping. I thought of the people living through hurricane Alicia in the USA, where great spirals of clouds encircled their homes, and roofs that took days to build were lifted off buildings in a few seconds. My friend Tanya had mentioned that the storm surge had sent flooding into the streets of downtown Miami where she owned an apartment.

I rounded the corner and braced against another gust, my till receipt suddenly flying away like confetti. The outdoor parcel box was no longer by my front door. Later I found it in the garden without its lid. Thankfully there had been no parcels today.

So many molecules in motion, I thought. I imagined the Nitrogen and Oxygen curling around corners compressing and expanding, flowing against all resistance and toying with the upper branches of the dancing trees.

Thankfully the rain had ceased otherwise I would have been soaked. After struggling to find my key, I opened the door at last. I stepped inside dropping my groceries and closed the door, relishing the sudden calm, only punctuated by the tinkling sound of the the wind chime holding its own against invisible vortices outside my door.