Suddenly, the wind picks up as the dust rolls rapidly. The ground rumbles as the cane trucks roll in. The fire starts in the middle and slowly creeps outward. Thin gray smoke rises and floats into the air. Rats scurry across the road, trying to get away from the fire.
Egrets swoop down to feast on worms.
The rising smoke twists and turns in the air, changing from brown to gray, looking like rain clouds. The burning cane crackles like firecrackers or microwave popcorn, exploding in red-orange sparks. The flames crackle and crunch, anxious to burn the cane. Flames jump from stalk to stalk, hiding behind the smoke and burning the stalks to a crisp. The ashes rustle in the wind and land like soft feathers.