Now that NaBloPoMo is here, and I am purposing to post every day, it is time to engage in some retro-posting. Here is an evening from September that I never had a chance to post until now. More retro-posting to come. 

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While taking the week’s trash to the transfer station on Saturday (Sept. 27), I drove past the lower UAF parking lot on Farmers loop and saw five large structures made up hundreds of shipping pallets, unmistakably set up to be bonfires. I wheeled in the parking lot to get a better view and talked to a couple of firemen that were there making preparations. They told me this was an annual event for UAF students, and that the fires would be lit at ten o’clock. I knew I’d be back.

I came home and told Jamiee and Stephanie about it. I was surprised that Jamiee wasn’t interested in seeing them burn, but Stephanie and went while Sarah and the boys slept  at home. It had just begun snowing lightly before we left the house.

As we left the house, we could see the orange cloud of smoke lifting above the horizon, lighting up the night sky. As we pulled in closer, we could see the teeming crowd of college students milling around and facing the five enormous fires. As deeply rhythmic, amplified music flowed across the crowd, the energy grew, oved across the crowd and returned. It was contagious.

As the fires raged like pagan celebrations, the sky opened up with the weirdest snow I’ve ever seen. It snowed – not flakes, or even hail, but like trillions of little snowballs half the size of peas. The flames roared up, and the sky came down. And amongst it all stood Stephanie, the still, quiet center. Not a bad way to spend a Saturday evening.