Review of Cloud Burst
Summary
Cloud Burst is a tender and emotionally rich poem that explores the intense vulnerability and quiet hope of one soul reaching out to be seen. Written with lyrical sensitivity and depth, it evokes the emotional weight of waiting — whether that’s a lover longing for connection, or equally, a child longing for the recognition of a parent. With imagery drawn from nature’s drama — cloudbursts, storm clouds, rainbows — the poem traces the journey from internal emotional weather to the joyful moment of being seen.
Why This Poem Matters
The emotional landscape of the poem begins in a place of uncertainty and tension:
“You look up from behind a blind gaze / Where grey thoughts do battle / Like dark clouds gathering”
Here, the “you” could just as easily be a parent consumed by adult concerns, too distracted or overwhelmed to notice the presence or emotional needs of the child before them. The storm of the adult mind — full of worry, rumination, and unresolved emotional patterns — creates a sense of distance that the speaker is keenly aware of.
The inner world of the speaker, meanwhile, is charged with silent longing and imagination:
“I long to see the cloudburst’s gleam / For in my head we are already dancing, laughing / In a parallel world that doesn’t yet exist”
This “parallel world” is particularly poignant from a child’s point of view — an imagined space where the parent is emotionally available, joyful, playful, and present. The sadness lies in its absence, yet the hope lies in its possibility. This imagined connection is what carries the child emotionally through the distance.
The line:
“Unspoken desires hang in the air bristling with speculation”
takes on a heart-wrenching new shade when read through the lens of a child. These “unspoken desires” could be as simple, and as essential, as “see me,” “hold me,” or “smile at me.”
The shift begins when the child feels something shift — a glimpse of reassurance, presence, love:
“Your gentle strength supports my vulnerability / So that in a world of shifting sand and shadow / My doubts do not destroy me”
This could be interpreted as the moment when a parent finally makes emotional contact — perhaps not even through words, but through a gesture, an expression, a look. In a world that can often feel chaotic or uncertain, the child’s stability is anchored in that presence.
And finally, we arrive at the emotional climax of the poem:
“I catch your gaze, you see me, a smile / Like a rainbow in the sky / Joy, my heart dances.”
This is the cloudburst. Not destructive, but cathartic — a longed-for recognition that arrives suddenly, restoring joy and affirming emotional existence. It could be a parent finally looking up, finally seeing, finally smiling — and for the child, that is everything. It’s the difference between being invisible and being real. The metaphor of the “rainbow in the sky” captures both the beauty and the rarety of the moment.
In Conclusion
Cloud Burst is a luminous, emotionally intelligent poem that touches on the universal longing to be seen, recognised, and emotionally met. Whether read as the inner landscape of a romantic connection or through the lens of a child yearning for parental connection, its impact remains the same: a testament to the power of presence and the joy that can erupt from a simple, heartfelt smile.
It reminds us that love often resides in the smallest gestures — the glance, the smile, the moment of genuine attention — and that these moments, though fleeting, can transform storms of doubt into dances of joy.
In a world where so many feel unseen or unheard, Cloud Burst becomes a quiet anthem for visibility, connection, and emotional resonance — a reminder of how vital it is to truly look at one another and see.
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