Elmira Sky

Blinding Afternoon Light

A Peek of Blue

Gray Sky Over Elmira

Stepping outside, I'm blinded by a floodlight of sun-rays as if the sky were poised to interrogate me. Blinking is my only defense. Careful not to step off the porch into a pile of snow, I grab the railing and try to see the blue sky I've been denied for nearly two weeks.

Yes--this is the Pacific Northwest weather I recall from last year. No matter the precipitation, the sky over Elmira has persisted in remaining gray like welt wool socks hanging overhead. It feeds my desire for coffee and throws my sleep-cycle off kilter.

But early this morning I did glimpse blue peeking like a tired eye over the western ridge. Sometimes the sky looks through the hanging socks. Mostly it retreats and rain tracks water down the windowpanes until it shifts into a white blizzard of slushy snow.

Last night, in the dark with no light at all I had to trudge through snow drifts to wipe the satellite Internet clean. Poised to flee from monsters lurking in tall pines, I nearly collapsed when a tree branch dumped a bucket-worth of snow across my back.

I miss the sky and the sun.

So right here, right now on the porch I'm basking and blinking in the bright light. It is good to see you again, my Elmira Sky.