raven

the rain is heavy, it falls from the pitch black sky without hesitation or a pause. the drops bounce from the wet asphalt, making the ground beneath my feet seem alive; it takes only a few minutes before my shoes are thoroughly wet. it is useless to try to avoid the puddles that cover the vast majority of every even surface; when i was still in my bed during the hours of the night and listened to the drumming of the rain behind the windows these reservoirs of water were already here.  

the wind is strong as well but not as consistent as the rain. it grabs you unexpectedly, trying to push you off balance. when you run against it you can feel how you have to work harder to keep up with your pace; they say that this is not true, that running against the wind doesn't increase the effort required -- but right now it sure as hell feels like it does. then, suddenly, the wind disappears again, for a while, or eases up a bit; but don't make the mistake of thinking that it has ceased for good.

the wet ground reflects the street lights where it's not covered by the thick, squashed layer of dead leaves; it is the corpse of the summer gone that i run on. for now they still hold the colour of the sun, they are yellow and bright and seem to bring some light to the darkness -- but the edges are turning brown already, the process of decay is inevitable; and soon, sooner than you can imagine, the yellow will be rotten and with that all colour will be washed away from the scenery.

and in this darkness, how can you see any colours anyway. it is everywhere, this black, it is thick and impenetrable and even the bright neon lights of the advertisements on the walls of buildings seem defeated by it. it sucks everything in and lets nothing out, sitting on the world like a big, black bird: and even if the sunrise, still some hours away, will drive it away, the time of the year is such that you are aware of its presence even when its not there. 

it is a typical october morning, then, and as i ran through it i am smiling.

i must be going slightly mad.