On the darkest days...

 One of my favorite stories is of a strange darkness that fell over the North East in the first half of the 19th century, where the greater part of the citizenry were sure it was doomsday, a man is said to have decided to keep working on and asked that others did so, too. "I would rather be found here at my post," he said. His name was Colonel Abraham Davenport and I believe that John F. Kennedy spoke about that in a speech while he was a politician.

Yesterday was Martin Luther King Jr. Day, we celebrated and paid homage with flashing neon signs at all the schools and on billboards, I even saw folks holding signs on the road sides. I read a couple of articles and posted a commemorative on my Facebook wall. The day before was a snow day! It snowed for 8 hours straight in Atlanta, but the sun broke through once and I was so, incredibly disappointed.

I do not hate the sun. In fact I was missing my scantily clad summer days a little this week, driving around listening to music like I'm always headed to the beach. But my absolute favorite days are those days when it is completely dark with showers all day. It doesn't happen that often. 

I am going to go ahead and break out of writing a blog mode and get in writer mode. One of the things I wanted to try and use as a writing prompt was the essence of the dark day. As a young woman I once noticed while walking down a street with my husband that the electric light was beautiful when it is only a little gold globe on an overcast day. Since he died in 2012 I can remember him whenever I see the little haunting, romantic electric day light. So I think lighting plays an important roll in my ideal rainy day.

It is also colored differently, where the sky is all blue and the sun is the big white/yellow blaring ball, the night-like rainy day is a dark blue gray and the lights are twinkles of golden crystals. There is a stillness, but everything can be still anyway. The brightest days, with children and animals and wind and kites and laughter are flat when you're miserable. A ringing bell without the vibration. But the miserable and the dark are cousins, so we play it out and put on the persona on that dark day. 

I like a day that is only a few shades lighter than night time, that doesn't have any sun breaking in, that doesn't stop raining all. day. long.

A good rainy day has sounds that you stop and listen to, the drops and splashes under wheels. The voices outside and activities cease. The windows are opened to let the outside in, in consolation of each man's return to his own den.

I feel like these days are as seldom seen as snow days. I have a video of me reading a poem I wrote on a day like this. I loved this particular day so much that I have regularly complained that my life has not been as great as this! in while. But it could be the rain. Or the smoking. Or leisurely reading.

Me, smoking like it isn't terrible-