I watch the ripples change their size
But never leave the stream
Of warm impermanence
And so the days float through my eyes
But still the days seem the same
And these children that you spit on
As they try to change their worlds
Are immune to your consultations
They're quite aware of what they're goin' through

Tuesday, March 25, 2008

Time keeps on slipping into the future

A benefit of the time change is that I get to experience the wonders of the approaching dawn all over again. Today was an excellent commute into work. During a long stretch of rural 2-lane highway I was treated to seeing the first tentative rays of approaching dawn rub the eastern sky into a lighter blue. The first light clarion call for roosters to get to their positions. At the same time, on the other side of the road, the waning moon lit the snow with flowing blue light.

I was reminded of when I would fly for a former job (at least twice a week), one of the joys was flying right at sunset. If you were traveling in the right direction you could see the shadow of the earth bringing night to the ground. It could be bright sunlight in the cabin, but below was in darkness. In some places you could see the delineating line where the air was in day or night. I would frequently stop reading to observe its passage. So here I was, at least a decade down the line, and I was seeing it in reverse. The sky overhead was in daylight, but the ground I was on was still in night. The lingering snow and hoar frost on trees just added to the spectacle. Hope you all have moments like that.

2 comments:

Matt Mitchell said...

That's a great, moving post. I could feel it, man. I was right there with you.

Steve Buchheit said...

Thanks Matt, that memory of seeing the shadow pass over the aircraft, which happened several time, is one of my favorites from that time.