When the green neighbourhood dance to the call of the wild one
Dark are the skies; darker even are the clouds that stalk the rain
The wind came swift and slow; rushing at times as petals of flowers dance
To the music of the coming rain; to lullabies that made heads bounce
And to the Forest people, to the clans that inhabit the wooded lands
A rainmaker was awake, perhaps trying his skills or yet just being mad
The lightning draws bizarre images across the dark firmament
Causing the trees to look like knights with forks on the footpath
Silhouettes of mud huts stood motionless in the fiery wind surge
Exposed to danger: the rainmakers ire, the villagers, try to dodge
The day turns to night; shelter is the song of the hamlet
When the rainmaker’s strength leaves him or his tools* spent
He lets the strong breezes test on the call of the wild one*
But they wait on the men call him who had mastered the rain.
Commentary.
In Africa, people are capable of making or stopping rainfall. Most of these people are traditional doctors; those referred to have access to ancient wisdom.
Tools*: the rainmaking tools of the rainmaker, which comprise leaves, herbs, and other condiments.
Wild one*: it is evident that the rainmaker and the wild one are the same people or yet can be the source of the rainmaker’s powers.
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