Tornado

Darkness looming above heavy skies soon to be drenched by falling stones.
Claps of anger, flashes of light grabbing the attention of distracted adolescents.
Youth interrupted.
Silence.
Can you hear it?
But for the ticking clock and racing heart, nothing.
Pressure rising, lights flickering, confusion mounting.
Run!
Safety lurking beneath a mattress, beside a wall.
The howling train not held back,
We grasped at straws that were each other.
And then,
Nothing.
Rising, knees crumpled and weak, to make sense
Of the interruption of the day.
Looking,
Searching,
All was fine and yet,
Not.
Lives unknown to us lost while
We kept our own.
Relief?
Yes, for now.
Until the storm rises up again and we,
Once more,
Cling to what lasts.