Coming home: monsoon rains

(Manila, Philippines)

Rain blurs the flashing red of tail lights and

drowns the roadside gutters with

waters blackened by dirt and night;

splashes of silver on a swelling stream

as street lamps flicker open.

Patience is fueled by a capella music:

counterpoint to the scream of

rain and slow-moving traffic and

rush-hour-weary drivers.

I am home.