The Bells That Warn

The Bells That Warn

The bells rang out

the floods are here

run run for your life

water rises on the steps

the market square is lost

stone lions sink beneath the tide

their mouths full of silence

doors burst open

chairs float past

a man shouts as the river takes him

his cap spins once and is gone

children cling to their mothers arms

dogs bark against the roar

a cart tips over

apples roll in the black flood

bright skins swallowed in the swirl

the church drowns in its own song

the choir never finished the hymn

candles hiss and vanish

stained glass shatters under waves

saints drift face down in the current

the bridge cracks like bone

iron rails bend and break

those who ran too late

clutch at ropes that slip from their hands

the bells keep ringing

not to warn

only to echo the end