The Rainy Season

Time is not on the side of those who live in a hard-baked land

where rain used to come down, predictably,

in the rainy season.

Time is not on the side of those who wait for green shoots

to push their way through the dry red earth

in the rainy season.

Time is not on the side of those who collect water from springs

and rivers that are now no more,

in the rainy season.