Dave And The Volcano!

    I've seen a lot of volcanos in my day.
    There was Pompeii. Saw that one in
a movie. And Mt. St. Helen's. That one
was on the news back in 1980.
     So I wasn't sure if I should expect to
see people running towards us wildly   
or a big inverted cone when my brother
in law drove us to see the Kilauea
volcano on Hawaii's Big Island.
     We stopped at the Visitor's Center
where a Ranger surprised me with the
news we were standing on top of what
may be the world's most active volcano
the moment we entered the Park!
    Maybe I should lead the crowd in
running somewhere?
    Instead we were lead to an
observation area where you could see
the center of a crater spewing smoke
which was surrounded by dark, burned
earth.
    I had wanted to bring a goat or
something to toss inside for good luck.
But I never was able to catch any of
those Billy goats I saw near the beach
the day before. Besides, the ranger said
the fumes were likely to kill me before
I got anywhere near that close.
    I did get a chance to walk right through
a Lava Tube, a sort of Holland Tunnel
cut right through the earth the last time
the molten lava ran in that direction.
    I didn't take long to go through. It
occurred to me that the hot stuff might
come back while I was visiting.
    I can be very swift when I have to!
    Hope you never blow your top and
that all your News is good.