A Fire in the Sky

A dreary evening.

A surprising message. When was it sent? More than twenty minutes ago!

A hasty scramble for all manner of warm clothing. A clatter of shoes leaping down four flights of stairs. A well-lit night. Feet eagerly walking up and down, and down and up. A head gazing upwards.

A look of disappointment, and a slow walk up the stairs.

A discussion on Facebook: a time and a place – an adventure! Quick – a hurried dinner.

A group of shuffling feet. A pair of cameras, a flask of peppermint tea, a bottle of water. Excited footprints.

A hike into darkness.

A slope, a hill. A sheet of ice, a mass of snow. A moon, a star. A line of craned necks.

A glimmer. And a gasp.

A flash of green! A hint of pink. A flicker, a glow, a movement, a glitter! A wave of brightness!

An awe.

A silence.

And a fire in the sky.

Northern Lights in Trondheim, Norway. Photograph by <a href='https://www.facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=424920897600485&set=a.424920894267152.1073741835.157145004378077&type=1&theater'>Øyvind Schei</a>
Northern Lights in Trondheim, Norway. Photograph by Øyvind Schei

PS: It turns out that I own a compass that actually doesn’t point North. The irony.

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