The Monsoon / A Rainy Day

                    In the first week of July, sky was heavily overcast and rain clouds swept across the sky. Strong south westerly winds that blew over the Indian Ocean, brought the monsoon clouds which caused a lot of rain. South westerly monsoon is refeshingly cool and it brings relief to the gasping, heat-stricken people. So it did in July when the temperature rose alarmingly high. Newspapers carried reports of deaths by heat-stroke or exhaustion and the death-toll was mounting every day. A night before it had been oppressively hot and humind. It was dazzling sunrise and the moist dew on the grass glittered in the sunshine. Surprisingly the wind rustled through the swaying tops of trees. That was just splendid. The humid heat was gone in no time. We saw the rolling mass of black clouds across the sky. There was a flash of lightning, quickly followed by a clap of thunder. Large rain drops began to fall. The moment they fell, the dry earth sucked them. It was followed by a heavy shower. In the soothing shadows of dark clouds the streets were turned into streams. The high walls were drenched, the tree-leaves sparkled in glee. Low-lying areas were flooded.The young and the old alike ran up and down the flooded streets. There were scenes of jubilation all around. It rained for about one hour. Light vehicles broke down on the flooded roads. Motor-cyclists slipped and fell in pools of water.