Rain on the Rim

The fifth day was very hot and very quiet. Then the sky went dark grey. All the animals moved away from the sand. Polly went with them.

Then it rained. The water could not go into the flat rock above. So it came over the edge of the canyon. For one hour, there were waterfalls on the walls.

Below, the dry sand filled with brown water. This is why nobody builds a house here, said the raven. This place is a road for eleven months and a river for one afternoon.

In the evening, the water went into the sand. The canyon smelled green. The corn stood up straighter. In an old orchard, the peach trees were wet and clean.