* "Come He Come Say, Ride on the Night...."
After the polar vortex, we recovered for a few days, snow melt, green moss appeared around the old oak tree, sunlight lit up our moods....
THEN....high winds whistled in steep gusts and return of cold felt like tangible ice cubes.
Bang~ We knew it~ power flickered out like a faltering candle. Scurry around like squirrels in the charcoal light of twilight to prepare. Flashlights at the ready. We felt adrift in the fading light.
Darkness Fell like a Silent Cloak. Cats became anxious, or went into hiding in deep den, under the bed.
I looked out the back window, jealous of the neighbors who still had "lights and heat." I saw silver slivers of light behind inky cloud banks....."moon behind the darkness...." rising.
Later the moon became clearer.
Black and White
The Big Chill
Felt OK and warm for awhile and then the body began to cool despite the "layers upon layers" of clothing including a sweatshirt topped by a warm winter wool coat, with large faux fur hoodie. Cotton gloves gave added warmth to hands.
Time Drifts and Shifts
Thankfully we still had ability to light the stove manually with matches, and hot water trickled from faucets to keep the pipes from freezing. We cooked nothing on purpose, but placed large stewpots of water (not filled) plus some white vinegar in the water and simmered it to combat the dryness in the air. A bit of warm humidity in the kitchen, so needed.
It's only 9 PM....?
"Time" drags slowly to a turtle crawl. I became restless, but my room had become too cold for me to lie down. I remembered body temperature can drop quickly especially when asleep. I pondered the "longest night" propped in a chair in the living room, surrounded by cats. Our son, Rob stayed awake too....we monitored the hot water vapor here and there, and sometimes I took off my gloves and warmed my hands on the steam just for a minute.
I vowed not to sleep!
Wind slammed the trees and branches, howling like so many wolves. I remembered Pennsylvania winds and the strong winds whipping the plains of Iowa....Sustained winds of 30+ mph with gusts up to 60 mph. Thankful for a strong house.
"Pick up your flashlight!" when you get up and look for cats in the way. Rob was right, cats were in the path, staring at me with baleful eyes, orange cat, black and tan furry cat, dark tabby on her chair. Cats were invisible in the dark room even lit by the light of the street lights outside. And then those lights went out too~
I wandered a lot with flashlight, getting dimmer. I practiced a bit of Tai Chi/Qigong to keep warm and gather energy.
Bits 'N' Pieces
Lonely trains whistled in the night, roaring stove burners, and water running in sinks..."the babbling brook sounds are not calming....." Orange, the cat came and warmed me. I'd place my gloved hands on him and feel warmth. He repeated this through the night several times. "Catitude.".
Up and about, so cold.
The nocturnal secret life of cats....they remained watchful and alert in the night, some mobile, some stationary. They seemed amused that humans were up at night.
3 AM
Flashing Lights of Trucks! Grinding Noises? Repair is on the way? Not Yet....but we were hopeful.
Mind was calm yet thought images came. Like memories of coal fires my Dad stoked in the grey stone fireplace and the old coal furnace itself in the basement, coal dust everywhere. **Staring into the fire is hypnotic: "conduction, convection, radiation....Truer words were rarely spoken...." The color of the fire, determined when the temperature was ready for the metal piece the blacksmith heated, then quenching in water and shaping to fit.
4 AM
Still Adrift
***Thought of a show where Viking women known as Seeres went out alone in the forests at night, and stayed silent, sitting, calm, inner knowing. Perhaps like a meditation experience?
Alone yet not alone.
The sustained winds howled on and on.
I drifted in and out of wake-dream state, shifting into dreaming to semi awake to open eyes. I saw four images in the dream state: Two were of smooth round grey stones, lighter color than granite? A solid color....rather than mottled. They didn't look or feel like heavy stones. There were objects placed around them, one was made of black iron in the lower left corner, the shape of a 2-D table, with 2 legs and a straight top. Some beams of electric blue light and vivid lavender cross-hatched the images. The light beams were about 3/4" wide and in straight lines, placed randomly over the rock-forms. Every small grain of texture stood out and raised up, much clearer than "eyesight."
I fought sleep
5 AM only 5 AM?
Saw a fuzzy moon shape out the dark window (the windows were fogged) heading for an eventual set in the west.
More waking/dream images? Clear as day, even clearer than reality. I saw "awake" with eyes closed, "a white table" child size card table type and made out of white vinyl? Its four legs splayed out slightly and were curved. I could touch it in my imagination. On the table were "white plastic flowers," they had five petals, stems and leaves? I could touch those too. Randomly on the table, again were the beams of colored lavender light, only lavender this time, giving radiance to the scene. I knew they were in the living room where I was.....so, carefully and slowly, I opened my eyes and "perceived" the shimmer of "vision light" slowly vanishing, like a sprinkles of muted white light.
Experiencing multilayers of dimensions shifting and drifting, "re-entry."
Falling Asleep Again yet awake, the same white table vision repeated itself.
6AM finally....but still dark (growl).
Night Becomes Day. The first light, the longest dawn ever....
* Sun Become Day, Day Shall Provide....."
* Wind in the Plains, Dance Once for Me..."
* "Seek For The Way~ "
"Takin' Me Home...."
The Longest Night
Then....Moonset, first light
Wait Awhile Longer, grab 2 hours sleep in a bed as sun (yes sun) rises, mood lifts.
Take a ride around the neighborhood in a heated car! See repair men up on cherry pickers~ Thumbs Up, Smile at them. They smile back! "Minutes" to power....
Wind Subsiding.
Trucks going down the street!
Power On~
New Beginnings
Extreme Gratitude~
I miss me but I am still here....
Blog Search Key Words: Winter, Snow, Light, Cold
Related Posts:
A Strong Clear Vision
Magic Numbers
Light Returning
A Tale of Two Winters
The Reel World (crystal clear waking vision)
By An Unfaltering Trust
Resources:
Music:
* Neil Diamond, singer, song writer. Quote song lyrics and vocals, Neil Diamond/Tom Catalano, song Sooliamon
TV
** Forging the Hold Fast, The Woodwright's Shop with Roy Underhill and blacksmith guest Peter Ross, quotes by Peter Ross, PBS.org, Educational TV (2017)
***Viking Women Warriors, Megan Fox, 2018, the Travel Channel TRVL.
Dahlis Roy: Visionary Artist, Author, and Tai Chi Instructor
Images
Deer in the Headlights photo by Rob
Moon with Trees, photo by Rob
Imaginary Mountains, photo by Dahlis, crumpled blue foil
On Beams of Light, oil painting by Dahlis (natural light beams over oil painting)
Moonset, First Light, photo by Rob
Magic Numbers, microwave, photo by Dahlis
