by

Stormy Morning

11454297503_e27946e4ff_hYesterday morning…

Outside it’s still dark. The wind howls and rain periodically slaps against the windows. There’s an occasional splintering sound and then a muffled thud as branches and trees snap and tumble to the ground. By the flicker of candlelight, I write in my notebook. The glow casts odd, long shadows across the page, highlighting the pen point as ink emerges onto the page. My writing feels more important this morning, like it’s linked to centuries of candlelit compositions, imbued with historical weight. I write and write, filling pages.

Earlier this morning in the kitchen, the beam of my flashlight cut through the dark, illuminating motes of dust. I thought of April Pulley Sayre’s wonderful book, about dust (Stars Beneath Your Bed: The Surprising Story of Dust) and wondered about the origin of these small lit specks. Were they intergalactic? Prehistoric? Had they traveled vast distances, perhaps in some previous wind storm, to settle at this time, in this place? I watched them swirl in the light, enjoying their erratic motion, wondering.

Now, I sit in my circle of light, head bent over my notebook, the calm in this raging storm that surrounds my home. It occurs to me that too often I might be the storm in the calm, generating my own circle of agitated weather. Today, I revel in being the calm center. The gale blows steadily outside, a constant roaring hum with intermittent louder bursts of frenzy. In the rare lull, the sound of pelting rain emerges. Outside the darkness lingers. Inside the candles flicker and shadows dance. Dust settles. I continue to write and wonder what we’ll see when day breaks.

10 thoughts on “Stormy Morning”

  1. cvarsalona says:
    October 31, 2017 at 1:29 pm

    This was a gripping piece to read – filled with so much imagery of the aftermath of the storm. Being in the candlelight has provided time for reflection. Well Done, Molly!

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  2. lindabaie says:
    October 31, 2017 at 5:27 pm

    I’ve seen news of your storm, love that you made it a good thing for you, made it a “real” thing for us readers. We had snow a couple of weeks ago, and branches fell, but it was a quiet changing, no wind or pelting against the windows. This makes me want that calm night inside, too!

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  3. margaretsmn says:
    October 31, 2017 at 7:06 pm

    I’ve been working with my students on setting mood with word choice, setting, and imagery. You have it all in there. Storms are so good for mood. I’m amazed you kept writing. Hope the power is back on now.

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  4. teachingwritingalexis says:
    October 31, 2017 at 7:07 pm

    I loved reading your slice. I appreciate how much imagery you used to describe the storm and I like how you made a connection to the storm with how you were writing – I imagined your pen “storming” across your notebook. When you mentioned April Pulley’s book, I decided I will check it out in the near future 🙂

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  5. Dan Rothermel says:
    November 2, 2017 at 2:12 am

    I love these lines. “My writing feels more important this morning, like it’s linked to centuries of candlelit compositions, imbued with historical weight. I write and write, filling pages. Write on!

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