An Arabian Storm

A storm was rolling into Riyadh. The sky was turning yellow and hazy. I could see dark rain clouds and downpours in the distance, approaching. The lightening, and some thunder, was steady. Big fat raindrops slowly dropped down. There weren’t many. Even still, I sought shelter on the porch, where I sat and wrote my thoughts. The palm trees’ leaves were brown and dusty. I was hoping the soon-to-be downpour would clean them off. Everything was covered in Arabian dust and was need of a good washing. The ground was parched and in desperate need of water. It probably didn’t notice though because it was used to it. As the droplets fell, they dried up almost as soon as they hit anything. The air was turning gritty. My page was quickly becoming grainy beneath my hand and I had to wipe it off every so often. I was being driven inside by the blowing grit. Here, water is a best friend.

Raindrops on the wall

The ground’s reaction to a storm reminds of the US’ southwest, where just a small bit of rain can cause flooding - drains unable to compensate, small ponds form on low ground, lanes of the road become impassable

The downpour happened once I was inside.

When I returned to the muggy heat outside, I noticed the storm’s wind didn’t blow the dust off the palm trees’ leaves.