herding in the tropics

a sudden torrent washes out the road

my father speaks of an all-island rain

as little lakes expand across the plain

wet cattle move but slowly with a goad

thick mud resists and does not answer pain

a sudden torrent washes out the road

no one has told me how to read this code

nor how to hold a calm and even strain

in this wet season norms have turned arcane

a sudden torrent washes out the road