This is a day
when corpulent clouds,
pregnant with rain,
screen the sky, grey out
the blue, puddle the earth
and quench its thirst.
Children in colourful
wellies stamp and splash
in leaf-filled puddles
and domed umbrellas
repel plump drops
that bounce and plop.
Kim M. Russell, 19th October 2026

It’s Quadrille Monday at the dVerse Poets Pub and Lisa is hosting with Q 258 ‘I Screen, You Screen, We All Screen…’
Lisa says that she will do her best to entice our muses to dance along to the prompt and write 44-word poems including a word she has given us, which is ‘screen’.
She reminds us that a screen is not just what we might be staring at right now, but they are “other things as well. Something that blocks something else, like the windscreen of an automobile. Window screens keep bugs out. Ornately scrolled wood or bamboo movable walls that one undresses behind. Or a filter that employers use to investigate your personal history. Something prospectors use to sift gold from sand. Drug screens to prove you aren’t using to your probation officer. A cream you put on your skin to avoid being burned by the sun. A tool used for ruling in or out certain conditions.”
I enjoyed the example poems, especially the one by Patricia Guzman, which uses nature to hide one thing from another.
“corpulent clouds,
pregnant with rain,”
now that’s imagism – brilliant
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Thank you, Laura. We’ve had a lot of them recently.
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indeed and many more to come apparently
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It’s that time of year. At least I get to wear my new wellie ankle boots!
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I’m in the market for some – my calf length ones are perishing
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Regatta have some lovely ones. Mine are dark cherry,
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delicious
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Thanks Ron!
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Kim, I love how the children in their colorful wellies make the best of a gloomy day. Wonderful write using the prompt word!
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Thank you, Lisa! I have dark cherry coloured ankle wellies and will be out there splashing in puddles very soon.
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You’re welcome, Kim. I always knew you were a child at heart.
Mine are lipstick pink, picked up at a Goodwill store years ago when we (juvenile court) used to have hanging basket fundraisers for mother’s day at a place whose lawn was always sopping wet.
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Wonderful description…gives a poignant tone without forcing it.
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Cheers Ain!
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Gorgeous.
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Thank you, Marilyn!
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A delightful shower for sure, Kim!
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Thank you so much, Lynn!
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I enjoyed the imagery of colorful wellies and domed umbrellas.
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Thanks so much, Maria!
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“…puddle the earth / and quench its thirst.” Love that. I’m always happy when the rains come, it’s perfect bookish weather 🙂 And of course, I love a good puddle!
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Thank you, Nina. Yes, any excuse for reading – and splashing in puddles!
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I could feel the chill of rain in my bones from this, Kim! What a soggy, stay-inside kind of poem, loved it! 🩵
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Thank you, Cara! We’ve had a fair few of those days recently, and I expect more of the same. 💕
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I like the sounds in the poem. “that bounce and plop. … wellies stamp and splash” Excellent work Kim!
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Thank you, Stew. I love the sound of rain!
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I like the change in tone between verses – who can resist a little splash in a puddle! Jae
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Thanks Jae!
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So sensual! You bring it alive so I can see and hear it all.
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Thank you kindly, Rosemary,
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You had me at those corpulent clouds pregnant with rain.
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Lovely imagery Kim, those corpulent clouds have certainly given birth….. 💞
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Nicely done, Kim.
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Thank you, Dwight.
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Fabulous Kim – that second stanza is so good🙌
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Thanks Ange! 💕
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A burgeoning verse, Laura. It’s an embolding, life-affirming rain.
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Sorry, Kim. It’s getting rather late here. I had to many tabs open. Great poem.
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Thank you so much – I’ve already read the next comment!
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This is delightful, Kim! I enjoyed envisioning them ❤️
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