Ice, an inch and a half think, covered branches the size of a pencil. Rain was steady for most of the last day, and upon impact froze to its victims. Trees are bowing to Mother Nature, some falling to the ground completely in adoration. Water was turned off, cell phone towers are still out, and no electricity equaled no heat. A lit candle will increase the temperature inside a tent by a degree or two. I played Risk with some neighbors in a small room with about 50 candles. We were very warm.
I woke up this morning to the sounds of limbs crackling off trees. As they hit the ground, the ice shuddered off with a sound of glass breaking. Silence.
I took a walk down Broadway and awed at the sight of downed electrical lines and demolished trees. I passed a house and saw an 8th graders finish his perfectly formed snowball.
"You having a snowball fight?" I asked.
"Eh, not really," he shrugged. I knew his disappointment.
"Here. You get one shot at me - no, not that close. Ok, have at it," I proposed as I spread my arms out like a winged target. He wound his arm, and heaved it as hard as he could.
Wwwoovvvsshhhh. Good aim. I did a rendition of the matrix and dodged my head out of the snowball's trajectory. It would have walloped me square in the nose. The kid smiled. We walked down the street, exchanging news about the weather and excitement about being out of school.
"Good to meet you," I said, "Maybe if you are here when I get back you can throw another snowball at me."
"No ducking this time, though," he shot back.
This blog is in response to Mark Mallman's travel-blog, "Whereabouts in Melbourne (http://mark-mallman.blogspot.com/)." People are always interested in hearing about people's travels abroad. I will give my accounts of traveling abreast, in Danville, Kentucky.
About Me
- Rob
- A few years in Danville: The Presbyterian Church of Danville, Youth Director, culture, understanding, coffee, service, squirrels everywhere, friendship walking, sociology, (family life), (theology), outdoors, lots of national food, the new and unknown. I am grateful to be on a several-year-long endeavor as a Youth Director. I live in and am doing youth work and research in Danville, Kentucky. I welcome your comments, and look forward to hearing from you.
2 comments:
"Risk" with neighbors and a snowball throwing eigth grader. But no cell phone. The close proximity connections deepen when the technology goes down. Reminds me of the Appalachian Trail in a way. 19th Century community feel. Enjoy. I just hope nobody gets hurt in the aftermath of the storm. Be safe.
Glad to hear you're alive! That sounds about like it is here. Claire jut got here and so I finally have some internet. At least I have power. There's a tree on my car (car's fine...just stuck), which is no good. Hopefully we'll have a nice board game night with the neighbors. It's pretty awesome though walking around the city, coffee shops are packed, people everywhere. Makes everyone slow down a bit.
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