Last Thursday night I was driving through a part of Shelburne, away from the lights of Rt. 7, my son with me in the car at 10:30 at night. A flash in the northern sky caught my eye. I braked, riveted to the sky. Many miles to the north, lightning lit up the clouds. There were only occasional clear bolts visible, but constant illumination of the clouds between us and the lightning. I'd never seen so much lightning at once in my life. Multiple flashes, every second, here, now there, then on the other side of the northern sky. A constant lightshow, it was mesmerizing. I was captivated.
After 10 minutes of silent, delighted observation, a small, sleepy voice disturbed my vigil. "Mom? Can we go home now?"
It took all my willpower to turn away from the lights; the orange, yellow and pink of the clouds as the lightning continued within them, unabated. I marveled at the silence--not a sound to be heard from the storm so far away--while reveling in the perfect visibility of the visual evidence.
We wended our way home, through the trees and over the hills, losing sight of the magnificent display. But I kept it with me, stored in a file in my brain labeled "Outrageous Nature."
Sunset in the Champlain Valley
So much to be grateful for!
