Can it be...rain?

Date: 08 June 2005 01:00:33

Dry, dry, dry, and then the horizon glistens [SMH: may require free registration]

Rain is bound for NSW, and for the first time in months it is not just coastal showers. Some Riverina and Victorian border towns may get as much in one day as they did in all of autumn.

A weather system moving eastwards across Australia is expected to drop 30 millimetres of rain over some of the state's most drought-parched areas on Saturday.

"It seems like a miracle," says Elly Spark, a senior weather bureau meteorologist. "All I was seeing a week ago was dry, dry, dry. It's the first rain that's been worth talking about for two months."

As the horrific drought continues, we can give thanks to God for the prospect of rain. Please, Lord, send rain upon the earth to renew and refresh the earth, to make the crops grow, to provide food for livestock, and to provide a livelihood for those who live on the land.

News reports say suicide rates among farmers, particularly men, are increasing. The situation is indeed desperate. Lord, have mercy.