Star Light
There was a second big storm yesterday. This one brought hail and rain. My son and I pulled our vehicles under the carport and watched the ice fall. Then it stopped. The ice balls were about the size of a nickel. That would have hurt. Now, this morning, it’s clear and cool, about 60. I went outside to stand in the back lots and watch the stars. They were big and bright. That’s the nice thing about rain. It cleans things up, even the sky.
It's also the nice thing about living in the country. You can see the stars. Our place in Alvin was like that, country, with a dark sky at night. And here I am again, in the country, with a dark sky at night. I’m not sure everyone sees the benefit of that, because it seems as soon as someone moves to the country, they put up lights to chase away the night. The night’s not actually all that spooky, especially here in Texas now that the Comanches are gone and even if they were here you wouldn’t want to light a fire because it would just advertise you were here. Better to sit in the dark and watch the stars. But that was then.
Later this morning the sun will rise, and the temperature is supposed to climb into the 90s. That will make for a sultry day in central Texas. It will make me feel as though I’m back on the Gulf Coast, and that’s not a bad thing because I loved living on the Gulf Coast just as I love living here, and sometimes I think, I just love wherever I’m living as though I have no special place where I’d rather be. And I guess that’s the case. Here is pretty nice and there would probably be the same. I’m not sure what that says about me, other than, bring it on, I’m good.
John W. Wilson is the author of The Long Goodbye: A Caregiver's Tale