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Lake Conemaugh, of Pennsylvania
legend,
was quite a sight to behold,
but not so
far removed from its resplendent
beauty
were more than a few cracks
in the little
dam that made her such an
angler's treasure.
Problem was, when the cracks
did first
appear, as long as the skies
stayed dry, it
was thought there was nothing
to fear, and
warnings came and went,
yet sail boats
continued the lake's waters
to ply.
Then the rains came, extraordinary
heavy,
and the lake climbed higher
up the little
dam's walls, leaking out
through cracks
heretofore ignored. So stressed
was the dam,
wary eyes now saw only tragedy.
The waters topped the walls,
and the dam
into a million pieces broke,
maybe more,
and then the lake poured
out, crashing down
the sleepy river valley,
flattening all in
its path, and sweeping forth
to oblivion.
Woe Johnstown! You never
saw it coming,
but you knew full well it
would some day.
Perhaps the lesson learned
here, if any,
is to live not in homes
or towns downriver
dams that cannot withstand
acts of God.*
Proverbs 29:1
Amos 3:6b
Luke 13:1-5
*the culprit blamed for the
disaster caused
by the Johnstown flood |
