“Boxing Day In Six Months”

“There is no God by any name”
Until it’s time to make a claim,
For at that point they say, “No way –
It’s ‘act of God’ so we don’t pay”

So last night’s flood was going well,
Until a surging river swelled
And swept across our patio
And I called out a loud, ‘oh no!’

It overwhelmed the dikes and swept
Into our basement – doorway kept
It in abeyance ’till our goods
We moved up high from where they stood.

The generator failed to start,
And power failure did its part,
But in the end it was the sweep
Of newer water at our feet –

Which made the difference – bank was low;
It took some time for me to know
How water swept so suddenly
From up the hill to vanquish me.

But there it was – the ditch filled up
And overflowed like psalmist’s cup;
Four feet or so against the door –
Then rainstorm stopped – there was no more.

Now if you wonder “whence this rain?”
My guess? It from the ice-cap came
When all that ice and snow dissolved
Into that rain cloud – man’s involved.

“But no, that cannot be the way
Your basement flooded”, they will say;
“An act of God (who is not there)
Brought on the rain – you make repairs”.

So truth that’s inconvenient,
Meets truth that’s more convenient,
As God sits back and has a laugh
At silly us, for all of that.

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