Shelter

July 26

I am thankful for shelter. Shelter is good to have in storms, hurricanes, or tornadoes for sure. Even when we are parched by the sun a good airconditioned shelter from the sun is welcomed. More drastically, remember the bomb shelters and fallout shelters of the fifties and sixties? I am certainly glad that we never had to use any of those, but if we had, many of us would have been very thankful.

I came across this bucket of umbrellas during a tour of LSU on which I accompanied Bebe's cousin's daughter Elizabeth last week. She lives in Shanghai and is interested in attending LSU. These umbrellas were inside the Bell Tower, I suppose in case it rained on a tour. LSU colors, of course. Although these would not be good for major storms, hurricanes, or tornadoes, they are great for the more humble variety of rains/storms. These are, in a sense, portable shelters. If you've ever been caught in a cloudburst without one, you know the benefit of these.

shelter

give me shelter

from the bad storm

give me a fire

to keep me warm

give me a blanket

when nights are cold

give me a love

for me to hold.

© rt tulley

umbrellas

umbrellas are great to have

when the dark angry clouds let loose

and cold water falls from the sky

the soaking effect to reduce

but if you have your umbrella

don’t you always just know

it certainly won’t rain that day

there will be no clouds show

but if you forget that sucker

get ready for the full impact

for surely as the sun sets in the west

it will rain cats and dogs in fact.

© rt tulley