Poem for Wednesday and Witch Market Dressing

The Floods 

By Rudyard Kipling 

The rain it rains without a stay

In the hills above us, in the hills;

And presently the floods break way

Whose strength is in the hills.

The trees they suck from every cloud,

The valley brooks they roar aloud--

Bank-high for the lowlands, lowlands,

Lowlands under the hills!

The first wood down is sere and small,

From the hills--the brishings off the hills;

And then come by the bats and all

We cut last year in the hills;

And then the roots we tried to cleave

But found too tough and had to leave--

Polting through the lowlands, lowlands,

Lowlands under the hills!

The eye shall look, the ear shall hark

To the hills, the doings in the hills,

And rivers mating in the dark

With tokens from the hills.

Now what is weak will! surely go,

And what is strong must prove it so--

Stand Fast in the lowlands, lowlands,

Lowlands under the hills!

The floods they shall not be afraid--

Nor the hills above 'em, nor the hills--

Of any fence which man has made

Betwixt him and the hills.

The waters shall not reckon twice

For any work of man's device,

But bid it down to the lowlands, lowlands,

Lowlands under the hills!

The floods shall sweep corruption clean--

By the hills, the blessing of the hills--

That more the meadows may be green

New-mended from the hills.

The crops and cattle shall increase,

Nor little children shall not cease.

Go--plough the lowlands, lowlands,

Lowlands under the hills! 

-------- 

We had all day rain again on Wednesday, so much that the lake rose to the top of the dock, though we didn't get any additional flood warnings -- several people on the east coast asked me if we were affected by the floods, but Redmond fortunately seems not to be in range of the rivers. It was warmer than usual, not bad for an afternoon walk despite the damp. 

Otherwise, I talked to my high school friends in the morning and watched Loki with Kristen in the afternoon, and we went out to get bagels and some groceries around lunchtime. Our evening entertainment has consisted of The Masked Singer (Sea Queen!) and the third season so far of Slow Horses. Some of the people we saw dressed for the PNW Witches' Market: